About Us:
Ekya Vana Early Years is a thoughtfully designed early years learning space for children aged 18 months to 6 years, where childhood unfolds through wonder, exploration, relationships, and connection with the natural world. At Vana Early Years, we believe children learn best when they feel deeply connected — to themselves, to others, and to the environment around them. Rooted in inquiry, play, and nature-immersive experiences, our approach creates calm, meaningful, and joyful spaces where children are encouraged to observe, question, imagine, create, and care. Our learning experiences are guided by Vana's pathways — People & Planet and Earth Care — helping children build empathy, environmental awareness, responsibility, and a lifelong sense of curiosity. Every experience at Vana Early Years is intentionally designed to nurture Earth Sense — an instinctive care for the living world and the community's children. As part of the Ekya and CMR legacy, we bring together globally informed early childhood practices with a deeply human-centered and nature-connected philosophy of learning.
Role Overview:
The Head of Curriculum will play a foundational leadership role in shaping learning experiences, curriculum pathways, and academic vision across Ekya Vana Early Years centre — a growing chain of purpose-led early years schools. This role requires a deeply committed educator who understands early childhood development, inquiry-led learning, and nature-connected education.
The individual will lead the design and implementation of Vana Early Year's pathways-based curriculum for children aged 18 months to 6 years, ensuring every experience nurtures curiosity, creativity, compassion, confidence, and Earth Sense. The role focuses on building strong curriculum systems, strengthening instructional quality, mentoring educators, and integrating technology and AI-enabled practices into curriculum planning, assessment, and educator enablement.
Key Responsibilities:
Curriculum:
- Design and evolve purpose-led, inquiry-based, nature-immersive curriculum framework
- Develop age-appropriate pathways - (People & Planet, Earth Care) for 18 months to 6 years
- Build curriculum experiences nurturing Earth Sense, ecological awareness, creativity, scientific curiosity, and community connection
- Design interdisciplinary learning journeys integrating outdoor exploration, storytelling, eco-stewardship, and inquiry
- Create curriculum maps, seasonal learning journeys, provocations, and documentation systems
- Build systems, planning frameworks, implementation guides, and quality benchmarks for consistency across centres
- Leverage technology and AI tools for curriculum planning, differentiated learning, and learning analytics
- Benchmark curriculum quality against global ECE practices while maintaining Vana's unique identity
- Collaborate cross-functionally to align curriculum experience with Vana brand philosophy
Instruction:
- Establish high-quality teaching and learning standards across centres
- Conduct classroom observations, instructional reviews, learning walks, and reflective feedback sessions
- Support educators in creating responsive, inclusive, emotionally safe learning environments
- Ensure effective implementation of inquiry-based, experiential, child-centric teaching practices
- Guide teachers in facilitating provocations, questioning strategies, and child-led inquiry
- Build systems for lesson planning, classroom documentation, and instructional consistency
- Drive integration of technology-enabled learning and AI-supported tools where developmentally appropriate
- Monitor classroom culture, engagement levels, and educator effectiveness through structured reviews
- Strengthen academic execution and classroom quality with Centre Heads and leadership teams
Assessment:
- Design developmentally appropriate assessment frameworks for Early Years learners
- Build observation-based systems tracking holistic child development and social-emotional growth
- Develop portfolio systems, narrative reports, learning stories, and parent communication frameworks
- Create academic monitoring dashboards tracking curriculum implementation and learning outcomes
- Utilize AI-enabled tools for documentation, data tracking, learning analytics, and reporting
- Ensure assessments remain authentic, child-centric, and aligned to Early Years philosophies
- Analyse classroom data to drive curriculum improvements and instructional interventions
- Establish quality assurance processes and periodic curriculum audits across centres
Teacher Training & Professional Development:
- Design comprehensive professional development programs for educators and academic teams
- Conduct workshops on inquiry-led learning, Reggio-inspired practices, outdoor learning, and sustainability education
- Build structured onboarding and induction programs aligned to Vana philosophy
- Train educators on educational technology, AI tools, documentation systems, and curriculum platforms
- Develop competency frameworks, training calendars, and continuous learning programs
- Curate professional learning resources, reflective practices, and collaborative opportunities
- Build strong culture of reflective practice, innovation, and continuous professional growth
Mentoring & Support:
- Mentor educators and Centre Heads to strengthen instructional quality and leadership capability
- Establish structured coaching cycles, goal-setting frameworks, and performance review systems
- Identify capability gaps and create targeted development plans with leadership teams
- Support teams in parent communication, classroom challenges, inclusion needs, and child wellbeing
- Foster collaborative, growth-oriented culture built on empathy, accountability, and shared ownership
- Lead cross-functional collaboration to ensure seamless execution of Vana vision
- Drive innovation projects, research initiatives, and thought leadership in Early Years education
Stewardship of Vana's Unique Learning Spaces:
Oversee effective utilization and continuous enhancement of signature learning spaces:
- Outdoor Spaces — Mud Kitchen, Gardening Patch, Outdoor Classrooms, Butterfly Garden
- Indoor Spaces — Eco Lab, Nature Workshop, Indoor Atelier, Movement Room, Library, Mindfulness Space
- Living Ecosystems — Bio Pond, Bug Hotel, Bird Watching Nook, Material Museum, Composting System
- Community Engagement Spaces — Sensory Pathway, Green Wall, Loose Play Areas
- Ensure every space supports pedagogical goals and provides rich, developmentally appropriate learning opportunities
Desired Candidate Profile:
- Master's Degree in Early Childhood Education, Curriculum & Instruction, Education Leadership, or related field
- 10–15 years of relevant Early Years education experience with expertise in curriculum design and instructional leadership
- Strong teaching experience in progressive Early Years environments (18 months to 6 years)
- Demonstrated experience building and implementing curriculum systems across multiple centres
- Experience integrating technology and AI tools into curriculum, assessment, and academic monitoring systems
- Deep understanding of inquiry-led, play-based, Reggio-inspired, or nature-based pedagogies
- Proven experience in teacher mentoring, people management, and cross-functional collaboration
- International exposure through curriculum collaborations, certifications, or global educational practices
- Strong capabilities in systems building, process design, implementation monitoring, and quality assurance
- Excellent facilitation, coaching, stakeholder management, and communication skills
- Passion for sustainability education, child agency, innovation, and meaningful learning experiences
Key Competencies:
- Curriculum Design & Academic Leadership
- Instructional Coaching & Teacher Development
- Early Childhood Pedagogy
- Systems Thinking & Process Building
- Technology & AI Utilization
- Project & People Management
- Stakeholder & Parent Management
- Cross-Functional Collaboration
- Innovation & Change Management
- Communication & Facilitation Skills
- Sustainability & Nature-Based Education
Position Reports To: Founder
