Teach in a primary school o give private French/Spanish lessons in Guatemala

Details

• 

  Description

  Hello!
  
  We are a nice Belgian-Guatemalan couple of 38-46 years old. We live on a farm in the Polochic Valley, near Panzós in Alta Verapaz (Guatemala). It is an area populated almost exclusively by indigenous Q'eqchis.
  
  We live from agriculture. Besides, we have a private school that was created so that children living on the farm or near it can access primary education.
  We employ 2 local teachers on a permanent basis and try to always have 2 volunteers to teach at the school. There are 45 children divided into 4 classrooms. Each of the teachers is in charge of a group.
  The classes are in the morning and are taught in Spanish, so it is an important requirement to speak and write it correctly. Another important condition is the duration of the stay: in principle, volunteers stay for half a cycle, that is to say 5 months, but sometimes circumstances force us to be more flexible.
  Here in Guatemala, the school year runs from January to the end of October and we have 2 weeks of vacation in the middle of the cycle, in the first half of June.
  
  Note! Now we are also looking for a French-speaking teacher/tutor to give CNED classes to our 7-year-old son, in particular from March 2023 to the end of June, or from September 23 to June of the other year.
  
  The place is really beautiful, very green, in the middle of nature. We also produce a large part of our food: rice, coffee, honey, bread, dairy products, goat cheese, eggs... Fruits and vegetables come from the garden or from the local market. The meat, the corn from the neighborhood... We like to eat rich and healthy!
  
  The volunteers have their own equipped house, 50 meters from ours. They have breakfast at their house but we always get together for lunch at noon and at least 2 nights a week. We like to organize 'pizza parties' with our friends or relatives who live nearby.
  
  For those who like to go out on weekends, the region is full of beautiful places such as Lake Izabal, El Paraíso, Río Dulce, Livingston, Semuc Champey, etc. But at home we are not bored either because activities and good coexistence are not necessary.
  
  Do not hesitate to contact us. Regards!
  ============
  ¡Hola!
  
  Somos una simpática pareja belgo-guatemalteca de 38-46 años. Vivimos en una finca agrícola en el Valle del Polochic, cerca de Panzós en Alta Verapaz (Guatemala). Es una zona poblada casi exclusivamente por indigenas q'eqchis.
  
  Vivimos de la agricultura. Aparte tenemos una escuelita privada que fue creada para que los niños viviendo en la finca o cerca de ella puedan acceder a la educación primaria.
  Empleamos a 2 maestros locales de forma permanente y tratamos de tener siempre a 2 voluntarios para dar clase en la escuela. Hay 45 niños repartidos en 4 aulas. Cada uno de los maestros se encarga de un grupo.
  Las clases son matutinas y se imparten en castellano, por lo que es un requisito importante hablar y escribirlo correctamente. Otra condición importante es la duración de la estadía: en principio, los voluntarios se quedan medio ciclo, es decir 5 meses, pero a veces las circunstancias nos obligan a ser más flexibles.
  Aquí en Guatemala, el año escolar se extiende de enero a finales de octubre y tenemos 2 semanas de vacaciones a medio ciclo, en la primera quincena de junio.
  
  ¡Nota! Ahora también buscamos a un profesor/tutor hablando francés para dar clases del CNED a nuestro hijo de 7 años, en particular a partir de marzo del 2023 hasta finales de junio, o a partir de septiembre del 23 hasta junio del otro año.
  
  El lugar es realmente hermoso, muy verde, en plena naturaleza. Además producimos gran parte de nuestro alimento: arroz, café, miel, pan, lácteos, queso de cabra, huevos... Las frutas y verduras vienen del jardín o del mercado local. La carne, el maíz de la vecindad... ¡Nos gusta comer rico y sano!
  
  Los voluntarios tienen su propia casa equipada, a 50 metros de la nuestra. Desayunan en su casa pero siempre nos juntamos para comer al mediodía y al menos 2 noches por semana. Nos gusta organizar 'pizzas parties' con nuestros amigos o familiares que viven cerca.
  
  Para quienes les gusta salir en los fines de semana, la región está llena de lugares hermosos como el lago Izabal, el Paraíso, Río Dulce, Livingston, Semuc Champey, etc. Pero en casa tampoco nos aburrimos pues no hacen falta las actividades y la buena convivencia.
  
  No dudes en contactarnos. ¡Saludos!

• 

  Types of help and learning opportunities

  Teaching

  Babysitting and creative play
• 

  Cultural exchange and learning opportunities

  What we offer is a real and strong intercultural exchange as we live in a 99% indigenous area, where the people's habits and way of living are very different from ours. Nevertheless the volunteers also have access to our lifestyle, which is simple but more European based. Living in the countryside in the middle of nowhere, eating local, producing its own food... is also part of the life we're offering. At school, the exchange between the pupils and the volunteers is generally very enriching and doesn't focus only on the education of the kids. The volunteers also learn a lot from them and their families: some have learned a bit of Q'eqchi (the local language), others take part in soccer championships with the local men, get invited to their houses to share typical meals, etc.

• 

  Projects involving children

  This project could involve children. For more information see our guidelines and tips here.

• 

  Help

  The classes are given in the morning from 7:30 to 12:30. Generally, each volunteer takes care of a group of 10 pupils and provide them general classes of primary level, all in Spanish. The afternoon is free, the volunteers just have to prepare their classes for the following day.

• 

  Languages spoken

  German: Fluent
  English: Fluent
  Spanish: Fluent
  French: Fluent

• 

  Accommodation

  The volunteers stay in a nice cabin in our garden. They have their own bathroom and private space. They cook themselves breakfast and dinner with the local products we give them, while we have lunch all together in our house. We are a 38/46-year couple formed by a Belgian woman and a German-Guatemalan man. We speak various languages and love receiving people in our house. We have 2 young children aged almost 7 and 5 years.

• 

  What else ...

  Various activities can be done on the weekends: horse-back riding, hiking in the mountain with its breathtaking views over the valley, you can visit beautiful places like Semuc Champey, el Paraíso or el Boquerón, quite close to the finca. We also organize pizza nights and parties with friends living in the area. In short, you won’t get bored!

• 

  A little more information

  • 

    Internet access

  • 

    Limited internet access

  • 

    We have pets

  • 

    We are smokers

  • 

    Can host families

• 

  Space for parking camper vans

  This host can provide space for campervans.

• 

  How many Workawayers can stay?

  Two

• 

  Hours expected

  5 hours a day, 5 days a week

Feedback (5)