English classes for village kids in the Andes of southern Ecuador

Infos

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  Description

  It started as a family project. My parents, my sister and I began it on our farm a few years ago, with the idea of eco-living and learning together. Since then life has moved us around: my sister now lives in France, and my dad has moved out (still a 15-minute walk away) and is retiring. It has become mostly my own project, which I run with my partner Mati.
  
  The core is the same, but it has grown. We’re building a project rooted in permaculture, community, and the idea that knowledge should be free and shared. That includes a climbing program for local kids. In January we start building a community center.
  
  We live on the finca near Susudel, a small village in the dry inter-Andean valleys of Azuay. It’s 1h30 by bus from Cuenca, and we pick you up at the stop.
  
  We love art, creativity and animals. We share the place with a lot of insects, lizards and birds.
  
  This is a queer, leftist home and a safe space. Everyone is welcome, whatever their identity, background or body. We ask the same respect from everyone who stays with us.

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  Types d'aide et opportunités d'apprendre

  Bénévolat

  Projets artistiques

  Pratique d’une langue

  Aide avec des éco-projets

  Enseignement

  Jardinage d'entretien

  Projets DIY créatifs

  Cuisine/repas pour la famille

  Aide à la maison

  Petits travaux d'entretien
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  Centres d’intérêt

  

  Dev. durable

  

  Dev. personnel

  

  Animaux de compagnie

  

  Ferme

  

  LGBT+

  

  Bénévolat

  

  Culture

  

  Écriture

  

  Soin des plantes

  

  Photographie

  

  Langues

  

  Histoire

  

  Jardinage

  

  Dessin et peinture

  

  Bricolage / artisanat

  

  Cuisine et alimentation

  

  Menuiserie

  

  Livres

  

  Blogs

  

  Art et design

  

  Architecture

  

  Animaux

  

  Yoga / bien-être

  

  Sports d'équipe

  

  Activités en plein air

  

  Nature

  

  Montagne

  

  Randonnée

  

  Camping

  

  Sports d'aventure
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  Echange culturel et opportunités d'apprendre

  -Hiking from the door.
  -Optional climbing on weekends with us. Until we’ve seen your level, please climb only with us; after that you can go in your free time during the week. If you climb, you’ll need travel insurance that covers it.
  -Arts and crafts materials, free to use.
  -A library of books in English and Spanish, plus a few in German and French.
  -If you speak German, I’d love lessons: I picked up a little doing a Workaway in Germany.
  -We love talking and learning about anything and everything, hopefully we have something to teach you and something to learn from you.

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  Projets impliquant des enfants

  Ce projet peut impliquer des enfants. Pour en savoir plus, consultez nos directives et conseils ici.

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  Aide

  When you arrive you’ll get a proper introduction to your tasks. What you do depends on your experience, your interests, how long you stay and your motivation. We try to give you a good mix. If there’s something in particular you’d like to help with, we’re open to suggestions. I’ll explain things and check in regularly, so ask me anything.
  
  ENGLISH CLASSES (the main one):
  The classes are free for kids from the community. Some of them climb with us, some don’t. Right now I can only manage one 2-hour class a week. I’d love for you to offer more time, so we can work out together how many kids can come and how often, and turn your stay into an intensive for them. You’d plan the classes yourself. I can help, and I have a lot of books, flashcards and games for materials.
  
  Native or very fluent English required.
  Teaching experience required, plus references from previous work with children.
  I’ll drop in on classes from time to time.
  No Spanish needed. Honestly, it’s better if you don’t speak it: the kids learn more that way.
  
  HUERTA:
  My mum used to run it. She left, and I don’t have the time, so it’s chaos. There’s a ton of weeding and planting, rotten bed frames to fix, new beds to build, and humus and compost to spread. Watering is easy, because the sprinklers run off a tap. Seedlings come from the family greenhouses, which are a separate business, so you won’t work there. It’s hard work, but it won’t be all of your time.
  
  VOLUNTEER HOUSE:
  We need to set up the remaining rooms, paint, and finish furniture (painting chairs and similar).

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  Langues

  Langues parlées
  Anglais: Courant
  Espagnol: Courant
  Allemand: Débutant
  Italien: Débutant
  Portugais: Débutant

  Cet hôte propose un échange linguistique
  Cet hôte a indiqué qu’il souhaitait faire partager sa propre langue ou en apprendre une nouvelle.
  Contactez-le pour en savoir plus.
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  Hébergement

  You’ll share the volunteer house with us. It has a kitchen, a bathroom, one double room and one room with bunk beds. Max 3 volunteers, minimum stay 1 month.
  
  Climbers and friends often come on weekends. They sleep in another room and won’t get in your way, but there’s a lot of community life. If you’re not a people person, that’s fine too: just tell us and we’ll mostly leave you be. My dad sometimes drops by on weekdays.
  
  Food: Mati cooks three vegetarian, protein-rich meals a day. We shop in the city once every three months; everything else comes from neighbours or our own land. You’re welcome to use the kitchen, just go easy on supplies and tell us when something runs low. If you want meat, you buy it yourself.

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  Autres infos...

  In you free time you will be able to go for walks around the property where you will be surrounded by nature, make a bonfire if it isn’t dry season, play board games and enjoy your surroundings. As said earlier you might be able to use the swimming pool. There are also busses which can take you to some cities around the area.

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  Informations complémentaires

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    Accès Internet

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    Accès Internet limité

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    Nous avons des animaux

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    Nous sommes fumeurs

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    Familles bienvenues

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  Possibilité d’accueillir les digital nomads

  Internet: reliable fiber optic. Ecuadorian electricity is not reliable: we share a generator with neighbours, so we can’t promise wifi during outages.

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  Espace pour garer des vans

  We have where to park down the hill from our house

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  Possibilité d'accueillir les animaux

  Yes, as long as your pet is sterilised and very well trained. We have a 3-year-old border collie, and there are areas of the house where dogs can and can’t go, so your pet has to follow house rules. We’re strongly pro animal rights and won’t tolerate any mistreatment, including keeping an animal tied up all the time.

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  Combien de volontaires pouvez-vous accueillir ?

  Plus de 2

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  Mes animaux

  

  Reshi

  Very well educared sheepdog

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