Like all of our programs for a work gap year , this project in Costa Rica allows you to benefit from a professionalizing experience while having a positive and lasting impact on local communities.

English support in schools:

Cimarrones schools often need tutoring in English. The reason is that the region is increasingly popular for English-speaking tourists. Local employers are often on the lookout for local English speakers to assist international visitors. Therefore, teaching English often helps children improve their future job opportunities. While participating in the Teaching English in Schools project, you will also have the opportunity to improve your own Spanish skills.

Help with educational workshops:

Children do a whole range of activities and games to develop certain skills depending on their age. This may include sports to increase gross motor skills, art, crafts and music to develop fine motor skills, and group activities such as games to develop certain social skills.

The assignment depends on the skills and profile of the participants. A telephone interview and a registration file (CV and motivation letter) will determine the placement of the volunteers on educational projects ranging from childcare to the organisation of extracurricular activities and tutoring / assistance in schools for those with the most training.

More details about the project:

When you do a gap year, you go to work in this project with other volunteers or in pairs to organize group activities and also provide individual attention. In addition to teaching English, you can also help young adults with conversation lessons. Training and planning activities will take place before and after work on the project.

Volunteers will also have the opportunity to get involved in other community development projects, such as creating or maintaining gardens, renovating a center and helping to organize events (these will vary depending on the needs of the community).

Costa Rica is a predominantly Catholic country, events like Easter and Christmas are celebrated here with enthusiasm. School attendance tends to decline during these times. However, we often organize summer educational programs or provide an individual tutor during the holidays. The development of community infrastructure, such as the renovation of centers and the creation of communal gardens, also continued during this period. Additionally, participants have the opportunity to learn more about Costa Rican customs by participating in the festivities.

A basic level of Spanish is required to communicate with children, women and other members of the local community. You can discuss the addition of one-on-one or group Spanish classes with your on-site manager. We also strongly recommend that you start learning early in order to get the most out of your experience.

Life on base:

Learn how to live the pura vida, or “simple life,” in the central Costa Rican community of Cimarrones. It is a small rural town on the border of the provinces of Cartago and Limón, nestled in a valley between two national parks with beautiful mountains. The base is about a three-hour drive from San José International Airport, in an area of vast sugar cane fields, coffee plantations and rich farmland. Here you will share a typical Costa Rican communal house in Cimarrones. Meals and cleaning tasks are all done together, with volunteers from all over the world, who like you, come to help and discover the local culture. On weekends, you can take advantage of your free time to visit the surroundings: you can explore the Irazú Volcano National Park, or the largest archaeological site in the country with the Guayabo National Monument, or share your experience with others. participants while relaxing in your accommodation.

Your impact:

All of our programs have short, medium, and long term goals that align with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs). This allows us to report on our collaborative impact around the world in a simplified way, measuring those goals to which we make a substantial contribution. In addition, taking a gap year means going abroad to help our local partners and communities measure and visualize their contribution to these Sustainable Development Goals.

Upon arrival at the base, you will be briefed on the history of the UN SDGs. You'll learn about your location's specific goals, long, medium, and short-term goals, and how your short-term personal involvement contributes to those goals on a global level.

Our goal is to educate you on local and global issues, so that you continue to act as active global citizens after your program, helping to achieve our ambition to build a global network of people united by their passion to do the difference.

Costa Rica was the first country in the world to make primary education both free and compulsory in 1869, financing the education program thanks in part to the state's shares in the coffee economy. At that time, only one in ten Costa Ricans could read and write. In 1920, 50% of the population was literate. In 1948, the country abolished its national army and transferred the portion of its national budget allocated to the armed forces to the education system. In the 1970s, 89% could read and write. Costa Rica now has a 93% literacy rate for those aged ten or older. In addition, in 1994, a policy of placing a computer in every one of the country's 4,000 schools, along with mandatory English language instruction, was implemented.

Despite this, education is not readily available to all. Primary and secondary schools can be found in every community, but many cannot afford the required uniforms, and rural schools often lack books for students. Children often spend so few hours in school, because the lesson schedule is divided into two sessions in order to adapt to the number of students.

Objective of the project :

Long-term objectives of the Cimarrones project:

1. Improve access to education and welfare in Cimarrones and around Las Brisas and Pacuare.
2. Increase environmental awareness in the local community.
3. Improve English literacy levels in the community of Cimarrones and surrounding areas.
4. Help create sustainable women-led businesses in the immediate community and surrounding areas.

Thus, RealStep offers you during a gap year to go abroad, to Costa Rica to contribute to the improvement of the living conditions of the local population.