Community Work with Children in Buenos Aires, Argentina

  Argentina

• Buenos Aires: 
Buenos Aires

Durations of Program: 2-4 weeks, 5-8 weeks and 9-12 weeks
Typical Duration of Program: 5-8 weeks

Description: Stretching along the Rio de la Plata, the energetic city of Buenos Aires is the gateway to Argentina. You wouldn't know it from the way they dance the Tango but recent chronic economic problems has created a lingering poverty in the city that has proved hard to beat, and this is where you come in! When hard times come to South America, it's usually children and wildlife that bear the brunt so we work with projects that help both, but if you're a people person this is the project for you. You'll offer orphaned and disadvantaged children much-needed support and educational opportunities before exploring the glamorous side of one of the world's great cities.

Project details:

In Buenos Aires i-to-i work with a number of care homes and centres which aim to provide support and care for orphaned and disadvantaged children. Most of the projects are care homes where otherwise homeless children, or children who have been removed from abusive or dangerous situations, live on a residential basis. The children range in age from babies to teenagers. The projects are funded partly by the government and partly through private donations and aim to give the children as normal a family life as possible. Other projects are day centres where children and adults can go for food donated by the local government along with education and recreation. The aim of centres such as this is to care for and provide support and education to disadvantaged children and adults.

Why the project needs volunteers:

Due to limited funding, projects are under-staffed and volunteers are needed to assist the staff in coordinating activities and caring for the children.

Highlights:
* Making a small but real difference to the lives of those at the project
* Learning to Tango - a cliche but a must!
* Living the Buenos Aires life - famous for it's 'beautiful people' and rightly so!

Qualifications: What kind of skills you need to go on this type of project:
You don't need any qualifications to participate in this project, but you must have a love of children and young people and be committed to working with them. You will need to be self-motivated, flexible and willing to roll up your sleeves and jump right in! A pro-active attitude is essential.

It is important to remember that many of the children attending these projects come from very difficult backgrounds and volunteers will therefore need to be patient, caring and understanding and are called upon to act as a role model. You should also be able to speak some Spanish.

Your role as a volunteer:
As a volunteer at one of these projects you will get involved in a variety of activities, depending on the current needs of the project. You will teach English to the children, assist the kids with their homework, accompany the children to medical appointments, organise and assist with sports and other recreational activities, assist with preparing and serving snacks and meals and assist in maintaining and running the home or centre.

Cost in US$: USD 1755.00 for 2 weeks, USD 330.00 for every week thereafter

* Accommodation: Shared room in homestay
* Food: Breakfast only (budget approximately USD 50 per week)
* Airport Pickup: Included on arrival date. Ask us for details if you're arriving early!
* Training: In-country orientation
* Support: Pre-departure helpdesk, Local in-country team and 24hr emergency support

Experience Required: no

Age Range: 18-80

This Program is open to Worldwide Participants.

Post-Program Services Include:

• Alumni Network

i-to-i Meaningful Travel's Mission Statement: i-to-i is an award-winning organization providing unique opportunities for you to travel, work and live abroad. Thousands of travelers aged 18 to 80 have joined our volunteer vacations and over 50,000 have learned to Teach English as a Foreign Language through our tailor-made TEFL courses. With over 400 projects on 4 continents, you can join the worldwide i-to-i volunteer community on an extended adventure in areas such as teaching, community development, sports coaching, conservation, building or internships in tourism, marketing, journalism, or health.

Year Founded: 1994