Kindergarten Teacher

Livewell Leadership Academy; Pleasanton (CA); On-site; USD 54,000 - 66,000; Full time

Job summary

Livewell Leadership Academy in Pleasanton, CA, is seeking a TK/Kinder Educator to lead the full-day group in our Cub Studio. The role involves delivering structured lessons and hands-on activities, with daily math and phonics, while coordinating with the Studio Director to maintain a well-run program.

You will work with two to six children aged 4–6, foster a positive learning environment, and communicate regularly with families about progress.

Qualifications

• Two or more years of classroom teaching in TK, Kindergarten or first grade.
• Bachelor's degree in education or related field preferred.
• Experience moving children forward academically in early reading and math.
• Ability to plan with Studio Director and follow structured routines.

Responsibilities

• Lead TK and Kindergarten group for the full day from arrival to close.
• Deliver structured lessons, math, and phonics, with hands-on activities.
• Coordinate with Cub Studio Director and maintain organized studio.
• Provide regular updates to families about progress.

Skills

High energy

Patience

Classroom management

Communication with families

Education

Bachelor's degree in education

Job description

Livewell is a private learning community in Pleasanton serving children from PreK through 12th grade across two studio locations. We are hiring a TK/Kinder Educator to lead our TK and Kindergarten group, about six children ages 4 to 6, inside our Cub Studio. This is a teaching role for an experienced TK or Kindergarten educator who knows how to help young children level up.

The person we are looking for brings infectious energy and warm patience into the room every day. They are positive and engaging, and they have a knack for connecting with young children that is hard to teach. Children warm up to them quickly. Parents notice it too.

This person also likes structure. Clear systems, consistent routines, and a well-run process help them do their best work.

HOW CHILDREN LEARN HERE

Young children need to move. At Livewell, children have room to stay creative, get up, and use their hands and bodies as part of how they learn.

There is a time to sit and listen, and children here learn to do that well. Daily math and phonics are taught in short, focused, structured lessons at the table. Outside of those lessons, learning is active. Children build, explore, garden, care for animals, create, and move. We believe that is where children learn best, and a good day includes both kinds of time.

We replace worksheets with experiences.

ONE IMPORTANT NOTE BEFORE YOU CONTINUE

We pay attention to detail and look for people who do too.

Qualified candidates will be invited to complete a written application before any conversation is scheduled.

THE ROLE

You lead the TK and Kindergarten group through the full day, from arrival to close.

This role reports to our Cub Studio Director, who leads the studio and the full Cub program. You lead your group within it. The two of you share a space, a set of families, and a standard, so a strong working partnership is a big part of the job.

The day moves between focused, structured lessons and active, hands-on learning. Daily math and phonics are taught at the table. The rest of the day includes play-based learning, projects, movement, art, gardening, and weekly time at the horse farm next door. Each six-week session follows a theme. Planning is done with the Studio Director, and you lead your group's daily learning within that plan.

Livewell runs on systems. Lesson plans are written well in advance. Family updates go out on a set schedule. Routines stay consistent so children know what to expect. People who find that freeing do well here.

WHAT THE WORK LOOKS LIKE

Your group should be a place where young children feel safe and known, and where they are clearly learning. Over the year, children who arrived unable to sound out a word begin reading to their friends. Math starts with things they can hold and count, and it builds from there.

Families at Livewell are partners and the primary authority in their child's life. At this age they want to know how their child's day really went, and you keep them informed clearly and often.

You also keep your part of the studio organized and ready, and you stay in close step with the Studio Director so the Cub Studio runs as one program.

WHO YOU ARE

High energy and positive, most days and on purpose. Children respond to the tone you set.

Naturally good with young children. You can get down on their level, read a hard moment quickly, and bring a group back together without raising your voice.

Comfortable teaching on your feet. You know how to turn a lesson into something children do, and you also know how to bring a busy group back to a quiet circle when it is time to listen.

Warm, with real expectations. Four and five year olds can do more than most people ask of them, and you ask.

Organized and comfortable with process. Written plans, set routines, and clear expectations make you better at your job.

Open to feedback. When your Studio Director suggests a change, you try it and tell her how it went.

WHO THIS ROLE IS NOT FOR

Someone whose experience is only in preschool or childcare. This is a teaching role, and we need someone who has already moved children forward academically in a TK or Kindergarten classroom.

Someone who wants a studio of their own. You will lead your group, and you will do it inside a studio led by our Cub Studio Director.

Anyone who relies on worksheets to fill the day. Outside of focused math and phonics lessons, children here learn by moving, building, and doing.

Someone who plans the night before. Our lesson plans are written weeks in advance, and that planning is part of the job.

Anyone who finds systems and routines confining. We run on process, and the right person is glad of it.

An educator who is calm to the point of flat. Young children follow the energy in the room, and this role needs someone who brings it every day.

Someone who would find it hard to stay neutral on politics, religion, health, or ideology with children and families.

VALUES ALIGNMENT

Livewell serves families who have chosen a private, values-aligned education because it reflects their convictions about how their children should be raised and taught. Our community is private and selective, built on the belief that parents are the primary authority in their child's life.

Families here hold a wide range of personal beliefs, health philosophies, and convictions. The TK/Kinder Educator respects all of them and stays neutral, never sharing personal opinions on politics, religion, health choices, or ideology with children or families.

If you respect parental authority and can serve conviction-driven families without judgment or agenda, we want to hear from you.

HOW WE WORK

Prep happens inside your paid day. Planning days and rest days are set in the calendar before the year begins. When you leave the studio, you are done for the day.

We want educators who stay with us for years, and we build the calendar and compensation with that in mind.

WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE

In the first six months, your group has settled into steady routines that the children can follow on their own. Families come to you with questions because they trust what you see in their child. You and the Studio Director work smoothly together without much discussion.

By the end of the year, the children are reading, working confidently with numbers, and handling the day with more independence than they started with. Families can see it, and they re-enroll.

THE PRACTICAL DETAILS

Location: Pleasanton, California. Studio location provided after the application process is complete.

Schedule: Monday through Friday, 8am to 5pm. Full time. In studio. Prep time is compensated.

Calendar: Year-round, with scheduled rest days, paid planning days, and professional development days built into the program calendar.

Compensation: Annual Service Contribution of $60,000, with performance-based bonus potential of up to $5,000 annually.

Time Off: Five paid personal wellness days annually, plus approximately 28 scheduled rest days in Year One. Increases with time.

Benefits: Health benefits are not provided.

This is a Contractor Member invitation within a private ministry community, not a statutory employment offer. Candidates who advance in the process will receive full details about the nature of this relationship before any commitment is made.

Relocation support is not provided. Please confirm that you are local to the Pleasanton area.

QUALIFICATIONS

Two or more years of classroom teaching experience in TK, Kindergarten, or first grade.

A demonstrated ability to move children forward academically, especially in early reading and math.

A bachelor's degree in education, early childhood education, or a related field is preferred.

Experience teaching early reading and math through structured lessons, balanced with hands-on, active learning.

Comfort working within established systems, routines, and advance planning timelines.

Experience in a private, independent, or non-traditional program is a plus.

Experience communicating regularly with families about their child's progress.

Candidates whose experience is exclusively in preschool or childcare settings are not a fit for this role.

THE APPLICATION PROCESS

Stage 2 | Discovery Conversation: An honest conversation with the Founder about Livewell, how it operates, and what we value. It is a chance for both of us to decide whether this is a good fit.

Stage 3 | Execution Audition: An independent work task completed before any offer is made. This is the most important step in our process.

Stage 4 | Final Interview: A conversation with the Program Director and the Cub Studio Director.