Teaching Pay: $42–$50 per hour
Paid Training, Meetings and Preparation: $30 per hour
Expected Hours: Approximately 6–10 hours per week to begin, with opportunities to grow
Happy Keys Piano Academy is a growing beginner-focused piano academy for children ages 4.5–11 in Vancouver.
Our mission is:
Learn with love. Play with joy. Be yourself.
We specialize in creating structured, encouraging and engaging learning experiences for young beginners. Our students learn in small-group piano classes with individual keyboards, clear curriculum goals, regular assessments, performances, challenges and support from teachers and teaching assistants.
We are looking for a warm, dependable and energetic piano teacher who enjoys working with children and would like to grow with our academy.
The Position
The successful candidate will regularly teach our:
- Young Beginners Piano Program for ages 4.5–6
- Elementary Beginners Piano Program for ages 6–11
- Private beginner piano lessons when needed
- Make-up classes, workshops and substitute classes when available
This is primarily a regular Saturday teaching position. One additional weekday afternoon or evening may be available depending on enrollment and the successful applicant’s availability.
Expected Schedule
- Saturdays, approximately 8:45 a.m.–1:15 p.m.
- One weekday afternoon or evening is strongly preferred
- Additional substitute opportunities may be available
- Paid training will take place before independent teaching begins
- Fall classes begin near the end of September 2026
A commitment through at least June 2027 is strongly preferred.
Main Responsibilities
- Teach engaging 30-minute Young Beginner group classes
- Teach structured 60-minute Elementary Beginner group classes
- Provide individual feedback within a group-learning environment
- Follow HKPA curriculum, lesson procedures and assessment systems
- Create a warm, positive and well-managed classroom
- Support students with note reading, rhythm, technique, musicianship and performance skills
- Work closely with a teaching assistant
- Prepare the classroom before lessons and leave it organized afterward
- Record attendance and brief student progress notes
- Communicate professionally and warmly with parents
- Help students prepare for recitals, workshops, challenges and academy events
- Participate in paid training, coaching and occasional staff meetings
- Provide substitute teaching when mutually available
The Person We Are Looking For
You may be a wonderful fit if you are:
- Warm, encouraging and genuinely happy to work with children
- Confident, energetic and able to guide a small group
- Reliable and committed to arriving prepared and on time
- Comfortable receiving coaching and following a structured curriculum
- Organized and able to manage transitions efficiently
- Patient with young beginners who learn at different speeds
- Professional when communicating with parents
- Interested in growing into additional teaching or leadership responsibilities
Required Qualifications
- Strong piano skills, ideally RCM Level 10 or an equivalent level of training
- Experience teaching, coaching, tutoring or working with children
- Ability to read music confidently and demonstrate healthy beginner technique
- Consistent Saturday availability
- Ability to commit to a regular weekly schedule
- Legal authorization to work in Canada
- Willingness to complete a background check before working independently with students
Preferred Qualifications
- Previous piano-teaching experience
- Experience teaching children ages 4–11
- Group-classroom or elementary classroom experience
- Music degree, diploma or current post-secondary music studies
- Piano pedagogy, education, early-childhood or child-development training
- Familiarity with RCM
- Experience with recitals, festivals or student assessments
- Ability to teach both classical and contemporary beginner music
Strong candidates with limited group-teaching experience are welcome to apply. HKPA provides structured, paid training.
Compensation and Training
Teaching compensation ranges from $42–$50 per hour, based on experience, training progress and responsibilities.
Required training, staff meetings and approved preparation work are paid at $30 per hour.
The initial training program includes:
- Classroom observations
- Curriculum and technology training
- Co-teaching
- Supervised teaching
- Parent-communication training
- Classroom-management coaching
- Ongoing feedback during the first teaching term
Why Join Happy Keys?
- Small group sizes
- Organized curriculum and teaching resources
- Teaching-assistant support
- Paid training and professional coaching
- Administrative support for scheduling and billing
- Opportunities to teach group and private lessons
- Opportunities to grow into senior-teacher or program-lead roles
- A welcoming academy community that celebrates both progress and joy
How to Apply
Please submit your résumé and a short introduction that includes:
- Your piano-training level and musical background
- Your experience working with children
- Any private or group-teaching experience
- Your Saturday and weekday availability
- Why you enjoy teaching beginner piano students
A short teaching or piano-performance video may be requested during the interview process.
We appreciate every application. Candidates selected for the next step will be invited to an interview, piano-skills assessment and paid teaching audition.
Pay: $42.00-$50.00 per hour
Work Location: In person
