Volunteer Role
Working within the local school, your main responsibilities are to teach physical education classes, with a lesson structure you will create and follow on from previous volunteers. Unlike the UK, Physical Education is not a compulsory part of a child’s schooling in Costa Rica, with resources generally being spent on buildings and teaching materials. With limited budgets and lots of students to teach, schools are therefore forced to follow a limited curriculum in which sport and physical wellbeing are excluded.
In the mornings, you will help to teach PE classes in the school, as one of the main PE teachers. You may have the chance to shadow the local teachers for a number of lessons and work as a teaching assistant to start. However, in some cases you may be required to run the whole class and even formulate your own lesson plans! The schoolteachers will give you all the assistance you need to do this and help you with teaching techniques and class standards.
The afternoons, after school has finished for the day, are then your time to run sports coaching clinics and organise games for the school children and other children from the local community. You are able to vary the sports you play – football is the main sport in Costa Rica, played by boys and girls alike. However, other sports are also popular, like basketball, volleyball and even baseball.
What’s Included in the Programme
- All airport transfers upon arrival into San Jose
- Arrival orientation in San Jose
- All accommodation during your stay
- Two meals a day
- Support and assistance from your co-ordinator throughout your time on your placement
What’s Not Included in the Programme
- Personal travel insurance for the duration of your placement
- All flights
- Transfer to and from Matapalo
- All items of a personal nature, such as souvenirs, gifts, clothing (work and other)
- E-mail/Internet and telephone calls
- Soft drinks, wines and spirits
- Any excursions
Prices and Durations
Costa Rica Sports and Teaching - 4 weeks $1,579
Costa Rica Sports and Teaching - 4 weeks + Language 1 week $1,989
Costa Rica Sports and Teaching - 4 weeks + Language 2 weeks $2,389
Costa Rica Sports and Teaching - 4 weeks + Language 4 weeks $3,179
