Primary School in Nicaragua

1. Basic activities and goals

José Madriz is a public primary school, open for everyone, even the poorest. About 600 to 700 students attend this school, located in the city centre of León. There is a morning and afternoon shift, with different students and teachers. There are 14 class rooms with all about 30 children.The main goal is to offer high‐quality education to children of all social classes, although the resources to achieve this are rather limited.

2. History

The school is a public school, where education is offered with scarce funding from the central government and,if possibly, by a monthly fee for the parents who are able to afford that. The school dates from the 1960s and is named after a famous diplomate, born in León, and for a very brief period of time even the president of Nicaragua. Due to suburbanization the student numbers have decreased significantly in the last few years.

3. Organisation

Apart from the director, Sra. Angela, a very hospitable and helpful lady, there are 27 people working at José Madriz, including the cleaning and security personel.

4. Tasks of volunteer

The regular daily routine is:

Morning group: 7.00‐9.15 class, 9.15‐9.45 break, 9.45‐13.00 class; Afternoon group: 13.00‐15.15 class, 15.15‐15.45 break, 15.45‐17.45 class.

It is important to add that the structure is not really fixed, so daily schedules can change, as well as educational programs and routines. You should have some flexibility to cope with this.

Volunteers can ssist in class, but can also invent activities for the children as part of their ‘manualidades’‐class, a class stimulating the fantasy and manual skills of students, at the same time addressing important issues such as environmental awareness for example, but also just to distract them from daily routine at school. You should really come up with a plan here as the director is open to offer you time to perform ‘your thing’; she likes volunteers that take initiative.

The school is an ideal place for class assistants, but also a good spot for people who like to organize activities for children. Please take into account that the school doesn’t have the funds to buy expensive materials, so think about low‐cost activities and maybe bringing some donations to fund the activities you will present.

Of course you will have an educational role for the children at school: smoking only outside the premises, you have to react when children are fighting, throwing trash on the ground, are disrespectful, etc.

Always observe the way teachers and the director handle these kind of things, so that you can learn the Nicaraguan ways to deal with this.

Info box:

Location: León, Nicaragua

Duration: Minimum 2 weeks

Special qualifications needed: no

Costs: none, the trouble-free package is optional

Accommodation: Not included

Meals: Not included

Included: Placement in the project; if you opt for the trouble-free package the whole range of services which is part of the trouble-free package is included

Not included: Travel to Nicaragua, health insurance, visa

Book this placement now!