Music Teacher (K-7)

Position Description

The Hunter School

Richmond, Virginia

Music Teacher (K-7) Opening

The Hunter School is seeking a Music teacher who loves the humble, beautiful work of teaching children to sing: to match pitch and keep a steady beat, to sing psalms, hymns, and folk songs from memory, to listen before they play, to handle an instrument with care, to stand and sing together without self-consciousness, and to receive correction without losing cheer.

This is a position for teachers who believe that singing tunes the loves before the mind can reason, that a child who sings well learns to attend, remember, and delight, and that Christian formation happens through ordinary faithfulness repeated over time, verse by verse, song by song. It is not a position for a performer, or for someone hoping to build a conservatory.

About Hunter

Hunter is a Christ-centered classical Christian school in Richmond, Virginia. Our lower school is ordered around strong academic foundations, joyful discipline, Scripture, song, memory, story, number, nature, and the formation of Christian character. Music is not an ornament to that work; it is near the root of it.

We are entering a season of renewed clarity and stability, and we are looking for teachers who want to help build a faculty culture marked by seriousness, warmth, humility, and good order.

The Work

The Music teacher is responsible for the whole musical life of the school, kindergarten through seventh grade, in partnership with the faculty and administration. This is a builder’s position: the teacher who takes it will write the curriculum map, set the program’s tone, and lay foundations for Upper School music as the school grows toward K–12, with first claim on shaping that work.

Responsibilities include:

• Teaching general music to grades K–4: singing, solfège, rhythm and movement, folk and sacred repertoire
• Leading the upper-grade ensembles, strings and choir, for grades 5–7, building toward simple, beautiful part-singing
• Leading the music of our daily morning gathering and chapel life, including seasonal services such as Lessons and Carols, scaled rightly to young voices
• Preparing music for school occasions, including commencement, awards, and concerts, that is warm, well-prepared, and modest in scale
• Writing the K–7 music curriculum sequence in cooperation with school leadership, favoring voice-and-ear-first pedagogy in the Kodály tradition
• Teaching music as something children make with their bodies and hands, through movement, rhythm work, and simple instrument craft, not merely something they consume
• Communicating clearly and charitably with parents

Participating in faculty meetings, professional development, school events, and other assigned duties

Qualifications

The successful candidate should:

• Hold a bachelor’s degree from an accredited college or university, in music or with equivalent musical training
• Wholeheartedly embrace Hunter’s Christ-centered mission
• Direct children’s choral singing with confidence and play functional piano; string pedagogy is a genuine plus
• Hold Kodály or Orff training, or demonstrate real sympathy with voice-first teaching
• Show strong classroom presence, warmth, organization, and follow-through
• Be eager to build a program rather than merely staff one, and to grow with the school as grades are added
• Model Christian faith, humility, charity, and intellectual seriousness

Prior experience in classical Christian education is preferred but not required. We welcome applicants who are eager to learn and who are aligned with the principles of classical Christian education.

To Apply

Interested candidates should submit a resume, three references, and a brief letter describing their philosophy of musical formation to Joshua McCroskey, Head of School, at [email protected]. Candidates advancing will teach a sample lesson with our students.

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis.