Volunteer Teaching English in Ecuador

Project Summary: This project involves teaching at the Fe y Alegria primary school in Quito. The school is for children between the ages of 5 and 12 and is home to 178 students who come from impoverished backgrounds; only 5 full time teachers are employed at the school!

Why the placement needs volunteers

Due to the lack of teachers and economic resources, volunteers are desperately needed in order to give these children the opportunity to receive a decent level of education so that they can have the chance to improve their standard of education and their standard of living as well.

Program Requirements

A basic level of Spanish is encouraged as you will be communicating with these children on a daily basis. You should also enjoy working with children and be able to think on your feet and come up with creative ways of educating the children. You should possess a proficient level of English but you do not need to have a teaching qualification to partake in this project.

Your role as a volunteer

As a volunteer teacher, you may either teach a class on your own or you may act as a teachers assistant within the class room. Depending on your experience with teaching and your level of comfort in the classroom, you will be assigned a specific role. You will also have the opportunity to become involved in extracurricular activities such as sports, arts and crafts and music.

Program Schedule

8am - 12pm and/or 1pm - 5pm, Monday- Friday. you have the choice of volunteering for either the full day or just half a day; If you would like to mix an intensive Spanish language course with your volunteer placement please inform us during application.

Project dress code

Since you will be teaching students, you will be expected to dress appropriately. Provocative and revealing clothing is prohibited and strongly discouraged.

Suggested resources to be brought to project

Donations of books, pens, pencils, notebooks games are always welcomed. If you are considering large quantity donations please confirm this with uVolunteer so that we can ensure that it is the right kind of donation for the school you will be working in.

Accommodation

Private Roomed Home stays
For a full cultural immersion, we recommend you stay with an Ecuadorian host family. These are comfortable, secure and sociable lodgings. In addition, you will receive 3 daily meals during your project placement, a private room, laundry service, cleaning service and you will be living in a residential area.
By choosing this type of accommodation you will also be contributing to the economic well being of the participating families by providing an additional source of income and thereby raising their standard of living.

Shared Rooms
If you prefer to share an accomodation with other volunteers or cook and coexist with other foreigners, we offer shared rooms in a hostel. This accommodation will include sleeping quarters, shared showers, kitchen (where you can prepare your meals), dinning room, social area and a small yard. This accommodation does not include food, laundry or a cleaning service.

Activities and Excursions around project location

Quito has plenty of colonial architecture and modern building have been strictly regulated in the Old Town since 1978, when it as declared a UNESCO cultural heritage site. The old centre is full of white washed houses, red tiled roofs and colonial churches, with no flashing neon to disrupt the ambient of the past.
The northern part of the city is the new town, containing modern offices, embassies, shopping centres and airline offices. It is very popular with tourists and almost all travel agencies can be found here. Some of the major sites include the 16th century monastery of San Francisco, a 16th century cathedral and the historic alley of La Ronda, which is the best preserved street in Quito. Other sites include El Panecillo which is a hill with fabulous views of the old town, topped with a statue of the Virgin of Quito. There are a wide variety of museums, numerous colonial churches, several spectacular plazas and open markets at the foot of El Panecillo