Work at Oak and Orca

A child-centred approach to education and a focus on bioregionalism make working at Oak and Orca a unique experience. If you want to explore alternative approaches to education and if you enjoy working as a team in values-based organizations, this could be a good fit for you.

Staff Testimonials

"Oak and Orca is a quirky, playful community that values authentic connection. To have a high school student offer you tea in a dainty tea cup, to see young ones and old ones wearing their dinosaur onesies to school, or to feel trusting enough let a student cut your hair because they'd like to practice, these kinds of connections make the sometimes difficult work of being a teacher worth it."
Eden
"Working at Oak and Orca is like having an amazing extended family composed of like-minded and skilled people with great communication skills and a love for learning and teaching outside of the box."
Jenni
"It is amazing to work in a community that values attachment. It is heartwarming to see the fruit of this when parents report that their child feels safe and cared for at school, when multiple high school students have joined the board of directors to remain connected after graduation, and when little ones stay up late to make a handmade card and gift because they heard they would see you outside of school."
Sage

Teaching Practices

Oak and Orca is a values based organization that approaches education differently than most schools. While these values inform our practice in a multitude of ways, there are some general practices that are consistently used in the school which are different from a typical school setting:

Application Process

a teacher at Oak and Orca School get's down to the child's height

  1. Read all sections of our website
  2. Gain an introductory understanding of Compassionate Communication
  3. Read the details for the position(s) you are interested in (see below).
  4. Fill out our Application Form.
  5. Save your application form, resume, and optional cover letter in PDF format and submit them by email.
  6. Check out the list of sample interview questions
Monarch butterfly drawing Only short-listed candidates will be contacted for an interview.

Interviews may be held in several sessions; you may be invited to one or more of the following in any order:

A: Meet and greet. Time permitting we prefer to meet folks casually in advance of offering an interview to provide an opportunity to develop a connection to the school as well as more clarity for prospective candidates about our unique work/learning environment.

B: 45-60 min Interview. Candidates may be held to the 45 minutes, including response to prepared questions and the ensuing conversation, due to a tight interview schedule. We prefer the interview to be a conversation and enjoy answering some of a candidate's questions during the interview.

C: 45-60 min session with a small group of children. Candidates may be required to prepare and implement an activity for a multi-age group. The intention here is to familiarize candidates with our learning environment prior to hiring.

D: Suitability testing. Candidates may be required to attempt various tasks or submit various projects completed at home during the hiring process for a particular post. The intention here is to familiarize candidates with the types of tasks they might be doing once hired and ascertain the comfort level with and suitability for certain types of work.

References will be contacted prior to a position being offered.

Positions

We always accept applications from folks who are keen to join our community.

Below are descriptions of positions we sometimes have available. We will reach out if there is an opening for which an applicant seems to be a great fit. We are looking for the best fit for our team, regardless of what position is applied for.

Teaching music at the beach Teacher

Special Education Teacher

Admin Assistant

Thank you for your interest in Oak and Orca!