Crèche & Nursery Teacher

About The Placement

We can offer placements in a Nursery, Kindergarten or Crèche depending on availability and time of year.

Within these classes and facilities it's usually a more 'hands on' approach, the children can be very young and therefore may need their basic needs satisfying as well as our focus on the first steps of education. Don't be surprised if you're counting numbers one minute and then the next helping to feed the youngest in class.

Why This Placement?

The classes or facilities for younger children in Ghana are often the most crowded. Teachers or Nurses are usually kept extremely busy and outnumbered on a large scale. The lack of supplies and equipment is a constant hurdle where the staff do their best to provide the best educational foundations for these infants to enable them to exceed when proceeding through the classes.
Your fresh approach and enthusiasm will be warmly welcomed by the staff and children alike. Nursery and Kindergarten classes are based in a primary school as the youngest classes, their job is to set the basics of education in place as often this is the only time that children will be learning their alphabet, numbers etc. The Crèche has the same task but is based independently and the children are started at an even younger age which also gives the benefit of parents being able to get back out working to earn an income for their family.

What Is Included In This Placement?

Although this placement is FREE of charge the following services are still included at no extra charge. This will include free accomodation and the use of the utilities, you will have use of the kitchen, electricity throughout the house and running water which is a luxury among the area of Kwahu. Daily transport to and from the project sites will also be covered for free by our organisation's vehicles. As well as the above mentioned we can also offer free airport collection upon your arrival and drop off on your return home, a member of the team will be waiting on your arrival and will accompany you to the volunteer house around three hours drive away.

How Do I Get To The Placement?

You will be living in a shared volunteer house with modern amenities, a member of staff will live on site and be able to offer any guidance or advice you may need. You will be taken to the project site in the morning and returned home in the afternoon for free by our organisation's vehicles. The town in which the voluneer house is based is fairly developed with local shops, restaurants, bars, banks and markets. However just a short distance away to the project sites you will be experiencing remote villages often with no modern amenities and a large amount of the communities living under the poverty line.

What Will I Be Doing?

Working with the younger children you will need to be very enthusiastic and flexible. Along with teaching basic numbers, letters etc you will also need to take care of basic child care. Helping to feed, having fun at play times, settling down for nap time, engaging a varied age of children throughout the day and generally ensuring that the children are developing on a day to day basis. Expect a lot of hugs, tears and laughs!

Who Will I Be Working With?

If the number permits we aim to group volunteers together at a particular school or project. You will work closely with a teacher or nurse and report to the Headteacher should you have any issues. A member of our team will also spend a portion of their day at the project to assist in anyway and offer any guidance should it be needed. Most volunteers strike up a strong bond with the teachers and are treat as another member of staff as if you were always there. It is not uncommon to be invited round their homes for dinner at an early stage as a way of saying thank you.

What Do We Expect From The Volunteers?

A teaching qualification or experience is not compulsory for this placement, your level of experience and confidence will gauge what level of students would best suit and will be discussed between the team and yourself on your first day introduction. The greatest traits of a volunteer are enthusiasm, empathetic and the ability to adjust to alternative cultures. You will get the most of our your trip by opening your mind to new experiences and beliefs whilst also bringing your own to the table.
We expect volunteers to visit their placements Monday - Friday, exceptions can be made for long weekends of travel etc but we hope for the children and yourselves to get the most of your placement this is kept to a minimum.

What Can You Expect From Us?

We will be on hand any time of any day to support you in your placement and trip as a whole. There will always be someone you can speak to or get a hold of should you want to discuss anything or require any guidance, from organising after school clubs to changing your placement. Our team living in the volunteer house will also be able to offer advice regarding travel plans and the local area so you will soon feel at home.

What Should I Bring?

Regarding your placement we advise bringing plenty of school materials, arts & crafts items and some ideas from teaching resource websites. These will prove invaluable throughout your placement as there is a lack of materials able to purchase in the local area. Basic pens, pencils and cheap paper are available as well as moderate priced photocopying should you wish to bring activity sheets. Particularly for this placement you will find that items to entertain a group are useful. Bubbles, school parachute and toys are always a win and guaranteed to put a smile on the face!

What Happens During School Holidays?

During school holidays if a volunteers placement falls within these dates then we will organise a holiday school. Usually in a remote village where the children are more than willing to join in, these days usually are more focused to arts and sports from lunchtime onwards.
The school holidays usually fall three times a year; few weeks around easter, few weeks around August and a few weeks during December.

• 07:50am - Volunteer transport leaves the volunteer house to project sites
• 08:00am - School starts
• 10:30am - 11:00am - Morning Break
• 12:30pm - 01:00pm - Lunch Break
• 02:00pm - School closes
• 02:30pm - Return to volunteer house
• 03:00pm onwards - Free time

Please note this an example of a schedule. Times vary on different schools and term time.


After school volunteers are free to go shopping in the local markets, return to the volunteer house or visit the local swimming pools.

Mid Week Free Time
After school and evenings offer these local opportunities around the local area:

• Hiking / Trekking
• Swimming
• Sightseeing (Waterfalls and breathtaking scenery)
• After school & Homework Clubs
• Sports facilities
• Live Music
• Plenty of Nightlife
• Restaurants & Hotels providing western cuisine
  

Weekend Free Time
Most volunteers will travel at weekends, across Ghana we have many amazing experiences which you can discover. Here are just a few ideas:

• Safari
• Museums
• Slave Castles
• Canopy Walk
• Waterfalls
• Malls and Cinemas (Showing latest films)
• Beautiful Beaches
• Surfing

We are on hand to offer any advice that you might need.