We are looking for adventurous, fun, and creative teachers to join us!

Manglares Discovery School is a private microschool in its fourth year, set at a secluded, natural jungle campus. Our students range from age 3 to age 11, and the school serves the nearby beach community of Playa Venao. Our school is focused on developing the whole child; academic as well as social and emotional well being.

Our early education uses a Reggio Emilia-inspired curriculum, and the area offers much potential in terms of inquiry extensions. For example, the campus is home to a waterfall; we get almost daily visits from three species of monkeys and other birds and animals. The local community has various interesting cultural traditions. Our student-teacher ratio is approximately 6 children to 1 teacher for preschool (but often less), and 10 to 1 for kindergarten.

Our elementary grades use US-based curriculum of reading, writing, language arts, math, science, and social studies. The curriculum is provided, but the candidate must have experience leading a homeroom class and display familiarity with engaging children and creating lesson plans. PYP experience is a plus. The class size ranges around 10 students.

We started with a single, early-education classroom, but have since expanded into elementary grades. We are now looking for lead teachers: 1 lead teacher to reinforce the Reggio philosophy in the early years program (ages 3-5) and 1 homeroom teacher to bring this child-led spirit into our lower elementary grade (Grade 1).

Our teachers bring diverse perspectives and love engaging with the children. The candidate(s) must embrace positive discipline, be open-minded and willing to adapt and incorporate various learning tools, pay attention to the students’ learning needs & interests, lead discussions, inspire collaboration and reflection, model a love of learning. The candidate(s) must have experience being in a classroom and display familiarity with teaching phonics and grade-level math.

If you believe in developing the whole child, love working with children, believe that life is an adventure, love nature, believe in the hidden potential of children, and want to try working at a growing school in a tropical location, this position might be a great fit for you!

The position requires relocation to rural Panama. Playa Venao is often regarded the surfing capital of Panama with consistent year-round waves. The candidate(s) must be willing to adjust to a new environment & culture (a slower pace of life) and enjoy nature (or learn to embrace it)

Our website describes our school in more detail (https://manglares.rocks). Or on Instagram (@manglaresedu)