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Volunteers can assist in educational and recreational activities in schools and day care centres throughout Costa Rica. You will assist teachers in classrooms and as well as developing basic conversational and written English with the children you will also be involved in helping with other activities such as teaching music, sports, art, crafts and IT. Your role as a volunteer will be varied and flexible and there will be the opportunity for you to use your own creativity to develop activities for the children to partake in.
Programme Age Limit
Minimum 18 years, maximum decided on potential participants’ health.
Volunteer Requirements
A basic to intermediate knowledge of Spanish is required to take part in this programme. Your working hours will be flexible but will usually range from about 15 – 30 hours per week and you can choose how often you help as well as how many hours you can dedicate.
Here are some suggested activities and outdoor games that you can do when working with the children:
- Making bookmarks
- Musical Instruments
- Mosaics
- Making puppets
- Charades
- Races amongst the children
- HopscotchYou will have the choice to volunteer at one of the following schools:
Betania Elementary School
The school is located in San Pedro de Montes de Oca which is conveniently located within a 15 minute walk or short bus ride from the volunteer centre. It is a public school with primary, kindergarten and pre-kindergarten classes. The school has 5 classrooms, a computer room, a library, and an eating area for the children. It also has a green area with a playground for the children and a small gym that is currently being repaired. In the kindergarten and prekindergarten the children are aged between 4 and 6 years old and in the primary school ages are from 7 to 12 years.
Volunteers will work as assistants to the teachers in the classroom and use their own creativity to help develop educational activities, and physical games. The school is also very interested in taking volunteers that can help with other activities, for instance, teaching music and assisting in the computer room.
Josefita Jurado Elementary School
The school is located in Curridabat, on the way to Tres Ríos and 25 minutes by bus from the volunteer centre. This is a small school and has only one group per level from 1st to 6th grade as well as a pre-kindergarten and a kindergarten group. In total, there are 160 children. Besides the regular classes, children also have religious education, physical education, English, and arts classes. As a volunteer you will work as an assistant to the teachers in the classroom, and help develop educational activities, and physical games and also play during the breaks with the children. This school has a lot of space and outdoor areas so offers a great opportunity to develop outdoor activities with the children.
Santa Paula Elementary School - Kindargarten Personitas (Little People)
This kindergarten is located in San Pedro de Montes de Oca. The school has 8 classrooms (for children aged 7 to 12 years old), one computer room, a playground area, a small library and a small “soda;” and a class for children of 3 and 4 years old. It also has kindergarten and prekindergarten classes. Volunteers will work as assistants to the teachers in the classroom, developing educational activities, and physical games. At this school children are encouraged to develop their own projects and research, so motivation is a very important aspect of working with them.
Teaching English Programme in Montezuma
This project is located on the Pacific coast in Montezuma, Puntarenas province. There are two schools in the programme and volunteers will be located in the school where they are most needed. Your task will be to develop an English programme for the children in one of the schools and to help you will receive a handbook with information on how to teach the language. You will need to plan activities and prepare class material using your own creativity without the need to depend on the teachers.
The location is very convenient and on your free days you can go to Montezuma beach or the Cabo Blanco National Park. In Montezuma you have access to basic services (phone, internet, tour companies, etc).
San Agustín de Guápiles Primary School
The primary school is located in the Limón province. This is a bilingual primary school for children aged between 2 and 12 years old. There is a pre-kindergarten and kindergarten group as well as a group for each level from 1st to 6th grade. The school offers subjects such as Maths, Science, Spanish and also further subjects related to theatre, dance, music and arts. Every year in November the school has a festival, which involves the children and the community taking part in different artistic activities. The children prepare for the festival throughout the year and this is something that volunteers can help the children with. Volunteers will work as assistants to the teachers and help with developing educational activities and games. This is a great placement for volunteers who are artistic and would like to spend time assisting with class art projects.
Musical Kindergarten
The kindergarten is located in Sabanilla and is a pre-kindergarten, kindergarten and preparatory school for boys and girls aged from 3 to 6 years old. This is a fun placement as the children’s days are spent doing activities such as arts, multimedia, music, flute, swimming, physical education, stories and poetry. Volunteers can assist the teachers in the classroom and also during the extracurricular activities. The children are scheduled to be at the school from Monday to Friday from 8am to 12 noon and afternoons are usually spent taking part in recreational activities.
Domingo Faustino Sarmiento Elementary School
This elementary school is located in San Ramón de Tres Ríos in a beautiful area in the mountains east of San José. The public school is a typical old-fashioned small town school that also involves the community, which is very poor. Volunteers will not be working directly with the children but will be working in specific projects related to maintenance and improvement of the facilities (painting, repairing, making games for the children, etc). There will also be the opportunity to participate in the preparation of educational material for the classes and special activities and celebrations at the school. As the school is located in the mountains the climate is usually a little bit colder and windier than the San Pedro area.
You will have the opportunity to volunteer at one of the following Day Care Centers:
Ana Frank Day Care Centre
La Asociación Cristiana de Jóvenes de Costa Rica (ACJ) is an international organization (YMCA) that has been working in Costa Rica for over 27 years. ACJ works in developing youth leadership, helping the indigenous community and working with children. ACJ provides a day care (guardería) service to families with limited resources to provide a safe and enjoyable environment for babies and school aged children.
Volunteers on this project will be helping to care for children aged 4 years old and above. The day care centre is open from 7:00 am to 6:00 pm from Monday to Friday.
Casa del niño Day Care Centre
The Costa Rican Work Ministry created this Day Care Centre in 1952, to provide children of poor working parents with day care in a home-like atmosphere and close to where the parents live.
Nowadays, this Guardería belongs to the PANI (Children welfare office) and the government gives them economic support to take care of 60 children from 6:30am to 6pm. The children in this organisation are between 6 months and 9 years old, come from very poor families and/or have single mothers. With limited staff and little resources, volunteers provide a valuable contribution to make the daily lives of these children more enjoyable. Volunteers also offer children the opportunity to have creative educational activities and learn about other languages and cultures. This day care center is located in Barrio Naciones Unidas, San José; a neighborhood in the south of the city of San José.
Choosing your Volunteer Option
Upon booking this programme we will require you to list your top two preferences with regards to your volunteer placement. Upon arrival into Costa Rica our volunteer coordinator will take you to see the various schools and day care centres allowing you to make your final choice.
Please be aware that projects are subject to availability and wherever possible we will strive to place you in your first choice.
Project Orientation
On your first day you will be taken to the volunteer centre where there will be an orientation. Here you will be provided with plenty of useful information about Costa Rica, San José and the project work, it is also a great opportunity to ask any questions that you may have. On the first day at your chosen school or day care center you will be given an orientation and further instructions before you start working.
Project Support
Throughout your stay you will have the support and guidance of a volunteer work coordinator and their team. They will be able to help you with any questions or advice you may need during your time on the project.
In addition, you are able to contact our UK staff 24 hours a day should you need to, via our emergency contact number.
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