In our Teach English Program, you will be working with local children in a Community Education Center near the favelas (shantytowns) of Rio de Janeiro. As a volunteer, you will be working directly with the children, helping with all ages from infants to teenagers. Volunteers will be assisting in the English education program at the center, including teaching classes, tutoring students, and helping organize scholastic activities.
Schedule: You will volunteer a minimum of 6 hours per week in the afternoons. Volunteers will attend Portuguese language classes, which are typically 8:30 am to 12:30 pm Mon-Fri. Schedules vary depending on project needs, and volunteers should remain flexible.
Start Dates: •Any Monday of the year, except the following dates
when the project is closed:
December 10 - February 5
February 23 - February 25
Cost Includes: •Airport pick-up • Accommodations •Intensive Portuguese classes •TEFLOnline.com teacher certification course •1-2 meals per day •Activities •Volunteer donation
Requirements: There are no formal requirements. However, we strongly recommend that volunteers have basic to intermediate Portuguese skills, and we suggest completing the TEFLOnline.com training course before arriving. You should also come with creative ideas for lesson plans and curriculums.
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil Teach English
Program Overview
>The Situation
You will be working with our partner organization in the Pavã-Pavãozinho favelas of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. This area is located on a steep hill overlooking the famous beachfront neighborhoods of Copacabana and Ipanema in southern Rio. Although the residents of the beach neighborhoods are wealthy, poverty overwhelms the shantytowns right around the corner.
Our partner organization in Rio is committed to providing health and education to the underprivileged families of the favelas in this neighborhood. They have converted donated houses into schools, daycares, and health centers for the favela community. They currently provide help for over 400 children, and their medical staff provides support for over 1500 families.
As a volunteer, you will be assisting the community center in teaching English, providing daycare, and organizing recreational activities with the children. Your work with the youth of the favelas will encourage them to seek higher education and help them feel like valued members of society.
Besides working with the students in the English classroom, volunteers will have the opportunity to help in specialized areas such as sports, art, computers and childcare in the nursery. As a volunteer in Rio de Janeiro, you will be helping promote the health and education of underprivileged young people, as well as giving them individual attention they crave and deserve.
>As a Volunteer You May:
•
Organize and teach English classes
•
Read stories to children
•
Tutor kids in English and math
•
Assist with meal time
•
Help organize the library
•
Organize field trips
•
Assist in administrative tasks
>Teacher Training
All volunteers in our Teach English Programs receive teacher training before going abroad. By completing our online teacher preparation program, you will earn your certification in TEFL (Teaching English as a Foreign Language), which will give you the skills and confidence needed to teach English overseas. Read More.
>Airport Pickup and Orientation
BridgeTEFL will provide airport pick-up in Rio and transportation to accommodations. Volunteers pay for transportation to and from the project and other activities. On your first day of volunteering you will attend an orientation about living and working in Rio de Janeiro, using public transportation, and volunteering at your project site. You will meet your project coordinator to discuss the details of your work and your responsibilities as a volunteer. Your project coordinator will accompany you on the first day and also on subsequent days if possible.
>Language Classes
Volunteers will be taking Portuguese language classes at BridgeBrazil, our affiliate language school in Rio. For more efficient placement upon your arrival, we ask that you take our Online Portuguese Placement Test to determine your language proficiency. If this is not possible, we will test you upon arrival at the school.
For the rest of your time in Rio, you will be in a group of four or fewer students, learning conversational Portuguese for four hours a day*. After class hours, you will go directly to the community center for your volunteer experience. During your volunteer work, you will be able to practice your Portuguese language skills as well as become more closely involved with the favela children and their culture.
*Class time for groups of three or fewer students will be reduced from four to three hours per day.
>Accommodations
Volunteers can choose to stay in either a hostel or with a Brazilian host family. Hostel accommodations include breakfast. Host family accommodations include a private room and two meals per day (breakfast and dinner). Commute time to the project varies, but may be up to 30-60 minutes, depending on your placement. If you opt to stay with a host family, you will be glad to know that our host families are carefully screened and must meet BridgeTEFL's requirements before being accepted as a host family. You will be given a key to your host family's home to come and go as you please.
>Meals
Hostel serves breakfast only. You will have access to a kitchen if you choose to prepare your own meals. Host family provides two meals a day, breakfast and dinner.
>In-Country Support
We work directly with our school in Rio de Janeiro to ensure your safety and support during your time in Brazil. You can expect help from the teachers, staff, and other employees at BridgeBrazil and BridgeTEFL. We also always have on-site support at the community center, where both coordinators and professional volunteers can help you with anything you need.
>Activities and Excursions
Although you will be serving the community for most of your time in Brazil, there may be time for some sightseeing. Below are a few of the trips that our local school organizes for students and volunteers, schedule permitting. Students are expected to pay their own transportation costs and entrance fees.
•Christ the Redeemer Statue
Located atop the Corcovado Mountain, this is one of the world's best-known
and
most-visited monuments.
•Botanical Gardens
Visit Rio's impressive Botanical Gardens, home to outstanding examples of plant life from Brazil
and
the rest of the world.
•Sugar Loaf Mountain
The views are spectacular from Rio's most famous landmark, which stands at the entrance of Guanabara Bay.
•Modern Art Museum
Situated on the water close to downtown, this museum houses some 1,700 paintings, sculptures, and engravings.
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