Nursery Worker/Teacher

  Peru

• All Other Areas in Peru: 
Trujillo

Durations of Program: 5-8 weeks, 9-12 weeks, 3-6 months, 7-12 months and 1-2 years
Typical Duration of Program: 9-12 weeks
Dates: ongoing

Description: This Project is to involve 10 mothers in setting up a nursery in one of the classrooms at SKIP for their preschool children. Mothers will give their time one morning per week to work in the nursery. In return, their child will receive free care for the remaining 4 mornings. Two volunteers will be provided to assist in supervising the children and also to train the mothers in how to run the nursery in the hopes that this Project may eventually become self sustaining. We anticipate the Project will commence at the beginning of the school term as it will not serve any purpose to start during the school holidays when they will still not have care for any other children.

The nursery sessions will provide an opportunity for the mothers to learn about child development, behaviour management techniques, different kinds of play, healthy eating. We will do this through a combination of role modelling appropriate behaviour and direct interaction with the mothers.It will also be an opportunity for the children to benefit from direct, focussed adult attention.

The Nursery Project will not simply give free daycare to the mothers, it will allow them to be involved in the organisation and implementation of it. The Nursery will rely on the participation of the mothers in order to run. Through participating the mothers will be able to improve their financial situaiton by having more free time available to work in a paid capacity.

SKIP has also found that group work within the community of El Porvenir has been extremely difficult because people do not trust each other and are resistant to the idea. The Nursery Project will bring a group of 10 mothers together working towards the same goal and will hopefully foster a feeling of community between them.
SKIP believes that education is one of the key routes towards sustainable development. The Nursery Project will educate parents in child development and will help them to understand the importance of stimulation for young children. In conjunction, the children will benefit from experiencing a nurturing and educational environment.

Finally, it is hoped that through providing alternative daycare, we will be able to alleviate the responsibility that is often placed on older children in families to care for their younger siblings.

Qualifications: Because we want to run educational workshops with the parents, we are keen to find volunteers who have a background in education for young children. Any background in child psychology or social work would also be invaluable, as we want to talk to the parents about child development and improve their understanding of what young children need.

We will expect volunteers to write the curriculum for the sessions, so an ability to organise and plan effectively will be essential. We are also going to be running this project on a small budget so we need people who are innovative thinkers, able to come up with creative but inexpensive activities to run with the children.

These children are young, so it is possible for volunteers to come who have a more limited Spanish ability as they will still be able to play with the children and can contribute to the lesson planning. However, for the training sessions we will need someone who is a relatively fluent Spanish speaker, previous experience in working in South-American countries would also be an asset, so that they are able to put across the relevant information and also answer questions that the parents have.

Cost in US$: USD 350

Contribution:

USD 350 per month for first and second month
USD 250 per month 3-5
USD 180 per month 6-8
USD 125 per month 9-12

You will have accommodation provided here but will need to pay for all other expenses such as food and travel.

Experience Required: no

Typical Volunteer: We are a diverse bunch of people who are all working towards the same goal of imrpoving the lives of the people of El Porvenir.

Age Range: 25

This Program is open to Worldwide Participants. This Program is also open to Couples and Individuals

Participants Travel to Peru Independently

Typically Participants Work in Groups of 2-3

Application Process Involves:

• Online Application plus Application Assessment

Supporting Kids In Peru (SKIP)'s Mission Statement: SKIP is a non-profit organization helping economically-disadvantaged children in El Porvenir, Peru to realize their right to an education. We promote quality education and foster the capacity of children and families to be the principal agents of change in their own lives. SKIP works in partnership with families through holistic programs focusing on the educational, economic, emotional and social development of each child and family.

Year Founded: 2003