Cocoon
Teaching Artist (Early Childhood Spanish - Part-Time)
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Teaching Artist (Early Childhood Spanish - Part-Time) Application Form
Tribeca & Upper West Side Clubhouses
Organization Description
Cocoon is a rapidly expanding, members-only club for families, offering beautifully designed play spaces, classes, and community experiences inspired by Montessori and Reggio Emilia philosophies. Located in Tribeca and the Upper West Side, Cocoon is committed to inclusivity—each membership helps subsidize prenatal and postpartum programming for families across New York City.
Position Overview
Cocoon is seeking a dynamic, creative, and engaging Teaching Artist with native or near-native Spanish fluency to lead Spanish-language classes for our youngest members.
This role blends early childhood education with creative expression and Spanish-language immersion. The Teaching Artist will lead developmentally appropriate classes conducted primarily in Spanish for children ages 2–5 and their caregivers, creating joyful, memorable experiences through storytelling, movement, and interactive play — all in Spanish.
The ideal candidate is an experienced lead early childhood teacher who can confidently run an engaging class entirely in Spanish. Musical or performance ability (singing, playing an instrument) is a strong plus, but not required.
This position is ideal for individuals with backgrounds in bilingual or Spanish-immersion early childhood education who are passionate about working with young children and thrive in warm, energetic, and highly social environments. Backgrounds in music, musical theater, or performance are a bonus.
Key Responsibilities
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Lead Spanish-Immersion, Play-Based Classes
- Facilitate engaging classes conducted primarily or fully in Spanish for children ages 2–5 years.
- Lead movement, art, and sensory experiences in Spanish using a play-based approach.
- Adapt curriculum and language complexity to meet the developmental needs of each group, including children with little to no prior Spanish exposure.
- Incorporate Spanish-language storytelling, rhythm, movement, and creative performance into every class (music/singing a plus, but not required).
- Confidently lead caregiver participation and group engagement in Spanish, with English support as needed.
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Support Children's Birthday Parties & Events
- Support and help execute birthday parties and special events, including Spanish-language or bilingual programming when requested.
- Bring energy, creativity, and stage presence to children's celebrations through music, games, movement, and interactive entertainment.
- Assist with event setup, execution, flow, and overall guest experience.
- Learn or perform creative enhancements such as balloon twisting, face painting, puppetry, or other interactive activities (training provided if needed).
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- Maintain Cocoon's Elevated Standards
- Keep classrooms and shared spaces clean, organized, and visually appealing.
- Assist with setup and reset of classrooms and event spaces.
- Collaborate closely with Education and Events teams.
- Support end-of-day closing procedures as needed.
Qualifications
Required:
- Native or near-native fluency in Spanish, with the ability to teach and lead an entire class in Spanish, immersion-style, for children ages 2–5.
- 3+ years of lead teaching experience in an early childhood classroom, preschool, enrichment program, children's museum, music program, or similar educational setting.
- Experience working with children ages 2–5, with a strong understanding of early childhood development and second-language acquisition in young children.
Preferred
- Demonstrated ability to sing confidently — ideally while accompanying yourself on a musical instrument (such as ukulele, keyboard/piano, guitar, or similar) — and lead engaging, interactive musical experiences for groups of young children and caregivers.
- Background in bilingual/Spanish-immersion early childhood education, music, musical theater, theater, dance, performance, or a related creative field.
- Understanding of, or experience with, Montessori and Reggio Emilia-inspired educational philosophies.
- Experience performing for children in schools, camps, birthday parties, museums, libraries, or other children's programming.
- Warm, energetic, and engaging with excellent communication, organizational, and collaboration skills.
- Additional language skills beyond Spanish and English are a plus.
Position Details
Type: Part-Time (with potential for growth)
Schedule
- Weekday classes (primarily mornings and early afternoons)
- Weekend birthday party and event shifts
- Additional on-call opportunities available
Compensation
- Teaching Shifts: $45-50/hour based on skills
- Event Shifts: $30/hour
Location: Tribeca & Upper West Side, NYC
Why This Role Is Unique
This role offers the opportunity to:
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- Work in a beautiful, thoughtfully designed environment.
- Build meaningful relationships with families.
- Use Spanish and creative play to inspire young children.
- Lead joyful, play-based, Spanish-immersion learning experiences rooted in Montessori and Reggio Emilia principles.
- Be part of a collaborative, mission-driven team.
- Be prioritized for future full-time opportunities.
EEO Statement
Cocoon is an Equal Opportunity Employer, committed to fostering an inclusive and diverse workplace.
Application Instructions
If you are interested in joining our team, please apply below. As part of your application, please submit a short video (up to 2 minutes) of yourself simulating a classroom experience in Spanish — for example, leading a short activity, story, or mini-lesson as if teaching a class of 2–5 year olds. No musical performance is required; if you'd like to include singing or an instrument as part of your simulated class, feel free, but it's optional.
If you run into trouble attaching your video file, feel free to email it directly to erina@joincocoon.com.
Applicant Information
Employee's full name (required)
Today's date (required)
Address (required)
Email (required)
Phone (required)
Date available (required)
Are you eligible to work in the U.S.? (required)
- Yes
- No
We’re thrilled that you’re interested in joining our dynamic team at Cocoon! To help us get to know you better, we’d love to hear about your experience working with families and children through a brief cover letter. In your cover letter, share some highlights of your previous work with families and why it’s been so fulfilling. Let us know what excites you about the opportunity to be a part of Cocoon and how your skills and values align with our family-focused mission. We can’t wait to read all about your experiences and see why you’d be a fantastic fit for our vibrant and nurturing workplace. Please send your cover letter and resume with the job title in the subject line to Erina McSweeney, erina@joincocoon.com.
A cover letter is required for applicant consideration.
Please upload your resume here: (required)
or drag files here.
Please include references in your resume.
Please upload your short performance video here (required)
or drag files here.
If you run into trouble attaching your video file, feel free to email it directly to erina@joincocoon.com.
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