Rural Schools in Elqui Valley

The six rural schools are spread across the length of Elqui valley and have on an average 15 children in each school. Unlike the larger schools, they have no formal English education till the 5th grade and that is limited to one hour a week with a Chilean teacher. The children are aged between 5-14. Given the disparity in ages and the less number of children, the teachers often divide the children in groups based on their age and conduct classes on various subjects.

Aims of the projects:

• To support and add relevance and authenticity to the teaching of English from 1st Grade, possibly from earlier
• To raise levels of English (few currently speak English with any fluency).
• To widen the number of sports on offer, e.g. basketball and volleyball, and raising levels of performance.
• To provide support in the teaching of computing and Information Technology.

We are also keen for volunteers to get involved in vocational training for young people and adults in the valley. Keen volunteers would help with communication skills in English in the context of the tourist activities in the valley as well as in the acquisition of basic computing skills.

Basic knowledge of Spanish is essential, as very little English is spoken. There is also a minimum time requirement of 10 weeks for these programmes. For volunteers with very little Spanish, classes can be organised in La Serena a coastal town 1H30 away or in the valley itself. This is a great chance to improve or learn Spanish!

Your role: You would be travelling to the various schools in assisting teachers. The idea is that the GpGuru volunteers provide native speaker support to these teachers and also accompany an itinerant teacher on day a week to the small rural schools. Since all schools have small groups of children, you will be teaching subjects other than English and also conducting other activities like sports, music, dance – Use your creativity to organise easy learning games for the children.

What you Gain: This is an exciting opportunity to explore a beautiful country of Chile and the picturesque Elqui valley. The experience of teaching children and organising extra curricular activities for them will make you feel more confidence. The most significant of all would be the sense of making a difference to communities that need it the most.