Critical Thinking & Curiosity Programme for Children (Ages 7–9)
The Why Place - Curiosity Academy
Location: London, in person
Contract: Sessional, fixed weekly commitment (Monday to Friday, half-days)
Pay: £220 per week
Training: September 2026
Programme duration: 26th October 2026 – 30th October 2026
About The Why Place
The Why Place is a curiosity academy where children learn through immersive quests, big questions and real-world discovery. We create experiences that help children understand themselves, think deeply and stay endlessly curious.
The Role
We’re looking for energetic, imaginative people to become our founding Junior Facilitators.
This role begins with our Autumn 2026 programme, but we’re looking for people who can grow with The Why Place. As we launch new courses and expand our programme, our strongest founding facilitators will have the opportunity to work across multiple Why Place programmes, with the potential for consistent work, greater responsibility and progression within the team.
As Junior Facilitator, your job is to help make The Why Place feel real.
Our sessions are built around immersive stories and big questions:
- Is it ever fair to break a promise?
- Where does a thought come from?
- How would standards of beauty change if no one in the world could see?
Children might walk into a mysterious kingdom that needs saving, receive a letter from a character who needs their help, investigate evidence, take on a secret identity, build something impossible or find themselves responsible for solving a problem the adults in the room cannot.
You help bring that world to life.
You’ll work alongside an experienced Head Facilitator, who holds the intellectual direction, group management and overall responsibility for the session. You bring the energy, playfulness, storytelling and imagination that make children forget they are in a lesson at all.
That means committing fully to a character; reacting with genuine excitement when a child discovers something; knowing how to make a mysterious letter feel genuinely mysterious; getting a quiet child involved in the adventure; improvising when children take the story somewhere unexpected; and bringing enough warmth and enthusiasm that children are excited to see you again the next day.
We are not looking for someone to stand at the back of the room and assist.
You are part of the experience.
What You’ll Do
- Co-deliver immersive, question-led sessions for children aged 7–9 alongside a Head Facilitator.
- Bring characters, stories, missions and imaginative scenarios to life through energetic and engaging facilitation.
- Help create the sense that children have entered a real adventure rather than attended a conventional lesson.
- Participate fully in games, challenges, discussions, performances and creative activities.
- Build warm, positive relationships with children and help every child feel welcomed, noticed and excited to participate.
- Support quieter or less confident children to become involved without putting them under pressure.
- Observe the group closely and respond to children’s energy, engagement and individual needs.
- Improvise confidently when children respond to the story in unexpected ways, while working with the Head Facilitator to preserve the purpose of the session.
- Support the Head Facilitator with group management, transitions and the smooth practical running of sessions.
- Help prepare and reset materials, props and the learning environment before and after sessions.
- Share observations and ideas with your Head Facilitator and the wider Why Place team to help us continuously improve the programme.
Who We’re Looking ForEssential
- Genuine experience working with children, whether through schools, tutoring, camps, youth programmes, childcare, theatre, coaching, volunteering or another relevant setting.
- Warmth, enthusiasm and high energy. You are someone children naturally want to engage with.
- A playful, expressive personality and willingness to be silly, dramatic and fully commit to an imaginative world.
- Strong storytelling and communication skills: you know how to capture a child’s attention and make an idea feel exciting.
- Confidence interacting with groups of children while remaining sensitive to different personalities and confidence levels.
- Strong emotional intelligence and an ability to notice when a child needs encouragement, space or additional support.
- Creativity and confidence improvising when something unexpected happens.
- Genuine curiosity yourself: you enjoy ideas, questions and discovering how other people think.
- Reliability, organisation and willingness to prepare properly. The magic only works when the work behind it has been done.
- Excellent spoken English and a collaborative, positive approach to working as part of a team.
Desirable
- Experience in drama, theatre, performance, storytelling or improvisation.
- Experience as a camp counsellor, activity leader, teaching assistant, tutor, youth worker or children’s facilitator.
- Experience with creative, experiential, play-based or enquiry-led learning.
- An interest in psychology, philosophy, education or child development.
- Experience working alongside teachers or more senior facilitators.
- Current students or graduates in education, psychology, philosophy, drama, performing arts or related fields are particularly welcome, although no specific degree is required.
Safeguarding, Checks & Training
- Enhanced DBS check — required at the appropriate level for the role. We will help arrange this if you do not already hold one. An existing Enhanced DBS registered with the Update Service is a strong advantage.
- First Aid training — desirable. We can provide this if required.
- Paediatric First Aid — desirable and valued.
- Safeguarding / Child Protection training — desirable.
- All Junior Facilitators will complete training in The Why Place methodology and safeguarding before delivering sessions.
Pay & Commitment
- £220 per week.
- Fixed commitment throughout the full programme week.
- Sessional contract.
- We are looking for people who would ideally like to continue working with The Why Place across future programmes as we grow.
- Strong Junior Facilitators will have opportunities to take on greater responsibility over time, with potential progression towards senior facilitation roles as they develop the necessary experience and skills.
Practical Requirements
- London-based and available to deliver sessions in person.
- Right to work in the UK.
- Available for the full programme period, 26th–30th October 2026.
- Able to attend required training in September 2026.
Why Join The Why Place?
You’ll be part of the founding facilitation team at The Why Place.
You’ll help turn ideas that currently exist on paper into worlds children genuinely believe in, and help establish what a Why Place experience feels like from the very beginning.
This is an opportunity for someone who loves working with children but wants to do something more imaginative than conventional teaching or tutoring. You’ll be trained in our methodology, work closely with an experienced Head Facilitator and have the opportunity to develop as The Why Place grows.
Most importantly, when a child walks into an ordinary room and, five minutes later, becomes completely convinced that something extraordinary is happening: you’ll be one of the people who made them believe it.
Pay: £220.00 per week
Work Location: In person
