Our Company
Little Robot Friends is dedicated to developing confidence, creativity, and compassion for kids aged 6-12 through our offering of STEM-focused classes, camps, kits, and games. We aim to provide our students with the tools for turning their imaginations into innovations by building digital skills in the areas of coding, 3D design & printing, graphic design, electronics, robotics and more.
This is exemplified in our weekly Coding Club, where we use a project-based approach to combine various digital and fabrication skills in new ways. These clubs foster a supportive environment, with 1 instructor for every 5 kids, where our students can build the confidence that is essential to growing emotionally and intellectually. This offering has been our most popular program for years.
We also run summer camps, birthday parties, adult workshops, and other special events. Our goal is to build a strong community around STEAM and maker culture, and support its growth within East York and the GTA.
The Position
In this hiring cycle, we’re looking for educators who will be able to teach and support classes on a part-time basis, starting from January 2024 with flexible end dates - though a consistent weekly schedule will be expected. This role is also designed around the university schedule, with classes wrapping up before the exam period each term. New hires will be trained by our expert staff before assuming core responsibilities.
Qualifications
Knowledge and comfort with technology is a strong asset, but the most important qualities are compassion and patience. As described above, our primary goal is to build confidence, so being able to empathize with kids at this stage of learning is really important for achieving that. Other assets include:
- Previous teaching, facilitation, or supervision experience at an educational centre, summer camp or any similar institution, preferably with children under 12 years of age
- Knowledge of block-based coding tools (ie. Scratch) and/or CAD software (ie. TinkerCAD, Fusion360) is a plus, but not required
Core responsibilities include:
- Adapting content on-the-fly to meet the needs of students
- Suggesting changes in program material to help us refine and improve it
- Taking attendance and making notes on student progress
- Notifying lead educators or the education manager about any issues that arise
- Keeping up-to-date with weekly lessons and being prepared
- Making sure classes are fun and challenging for our students
Work-load
Our September to June after school programming is held in-person, during Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. Weekday classes begin at 4pm and end by 6:15pm, while weekend classes begin at 10am and end by 12:30pm. In addition to classes, we also host a weekly virtual meeting to keep everyone on the team in sync. Our busiest day is Saturday, so our ideal candidate is someone who can work at least one weekday and Saturday.
We have educators who teach one class a week, but also educators who teach up to 6 classes a week - there is a lot of flexibility in this role! However, it’s important to also provide consistency for students throughout a term or program duration.
LRF highly respects work/life balance and we believe it is possible to create a supportive work environment that hinges on trust and compassion. The type of environment we want to develop for our students should be the same one we nurture for ourselves.
We strongly support diversity and inclusivity, and our track record speaks for itself.
Salary
We begin new educators at $18/hour based on experience, and scale that up to $22/hour for more experienced leads.
Location
Little Robot Friends is located between Woodbine and Coxwell subway stations, at 1832 Danforth Ave.
Final Words
We love connecting the imaginations and creativity of our students to the skills required to actualize their ideas. The confidence to solve big problems is essential to the future protection of our communities and our planet. At LRF, we aim to generate that early spark that can have a lasting impression in the lives of young artists and innovators. Come help us deliver on that goal.
Please send resumes and inquiries to: hiring@littlerobotfriends.com