Childcare Volunteering in Jamaica

Make a positive impact on the lives of local Jamaican children with a meaningful, and life-changing childcare volunteering project.

If you’re looking for a fulfilling volunteer program, then this childcare project is perfect for you. You’ll help to relieve overworked staff as you meet and interact with children who are eager for your attention and time. And, you’ll even have the opportunity to work with children with special needs like autism, learning challenges, or physical disabilities.

Make a difference with this life-changing experience that could leave you feeling humbled. Jamaicans are said to be some of the friendliest people in the world so your most special moments will be those when you meet these ‘little people’.

Jamaica is often sold as a top tourist destination, but there’s so much more to the island. There’s a real side of our country with people and communities suffering from poverty and other social inequalities.

Our childcare centers and orphanages are therefore often overburdened and understaffed and so help is always needed. You'll be working alongside local staff to provide the necessary support for these children as most times they are unable to get the one-on-one interaction and the individualized attention essential for emotional growth and development.

You'll also have opportunities to teach the children some basic life skills and play with them. The orphanages we work with are mostly located in St Andrew, outside of the city of Kingston. They house boys and girls from ages 3 – 14 years. In some special childcare centers in poor communities, there are babies and children below three years.

When working with childcare orphanage volunteering programs, you can work solo or with a group of volunteers. No prior experience is needed to volunteer. However, flexibility, compassion, and a natural love for working with children are required.

You might've heard about, read about, maybe even dreamed about the beautiful island of Jamaica, so why not experience it by joining one of our childcare volunteering abroad programs. This is your chance to see, feel and experience the real Jamaica while making a huge impact on the lives of the people who live here, and your own!

Essential Program Information

Program Times

Our programs are usually run Mondays – Fridays from 9:00 am – 4:00 pm. However, we can arrange shorter days for those who require it. Some programs might have activities on Saturdays which are normally pre-planned. We will help you to make the necessary arrangements.

Safety

At JVP, our mantra is “Your safety is our number one priority”. This means that our job is not completed until you arrive home safely. 

To ensure this, when you are in Jamaica you will never be alone. A Jamaica Volunteer Programs representative will always be available to you. In addition to this, on your arrival, we'll give you safety tips and strategies to use during your orientation. 

Like most other countries, Jamaica does have crime. However, our programs, routes, and destinations are designed around and away from those areas so you will always be safe. Even further, our volunteer home and program partners are located in some of the safest communities in St Andrew and Ocho Rios.

We provide 24/7 in-country support where our dedicated team members are always there to support you with any emergencies or other needs. This means that when you book with us you will be treated as if you are a relative visiting from overseas and provided with a safe home away from home. 

To further protect you, while volunteering you will be placed with a local mentor who will give you tips and support.  And, we offer more protection with full medical insurance protection through our partners for any unexpected illness or accident. 

Therefore, at all times you'll be surrounded by caring and trusted people to keep you safe.

Application 

You can apply at any time for all of our programs. However, we advise you to apply as soon as you can to ensure that you lock up your space.

Once you have paid your deposit and confirmed your place on the program, we will send you an email confirming your payment. This email will also include a link where you can download our Registration Handbook that will provide you with pre-departure reference and support information.

If you require any further information not covered in the handbook our staff is always on-hand to assist you.

Volunteer Experience Value 

If you are wondering if you can use your volunteer experience to boost your professional profile, then yes you can. At your request, we can provide you with a letter or certificate of completion detailing your volunteer activities and accomplishments. 

A volunteer experience abroad is a great resume booster and can be of great value when applying for college or a job. We’ll be glad to assist you to make it happen. 

As a volunteer, you’ll have an opportunity to work alongside the local staff but there are several activities you can do with the kids on a daily basis:

• Play with the children, talk to them and show them love;
  
• Do art & craft with the children;
  
• Teach a child to read or just read a story;
  
• Teach a general introduction to computing;
  
• Introduce children to word processing and work with Microsoft Word;
  
• Play video games and have fun;
  
• Play an outdoor sport like basketball, track & field, and soccer/football;
• Listen to Reggae music, and dance with the children;
  
• Teach them a simple skill like how to make a craft item;
• Help with homework – this is one of the greatest needs;
• Assist with agriculture projects like Greenhouse farming;
• Beautification & upkeep of facilities- example painting/murals or the building;

Most evenings you’ll go back to your volunteer home to hang out and plan for the next day.

Outside of arranged cultural immersion trips and excursions where you’ll have opportunities to experience some of Jamaica’s most amazing attractions, we continually look for eye-opening cultural activities for you to do in your free time.

Because of this we sometimes offer you opportunities to attend local events in the afternoons organized by our cultural ambassador/project coordinator.

Activities such as Jamaican dancing lessons, patois classes, and Jamaican storytelling are designed to keep you entertained, but more importantly, to further help you learn the Jamaican culture.

On the last Friday night before your departure, we have ‘Jamaica Night’ – where we will display some of Jamaica’s most popular food, play popular Jamaican music and also give volunteers the opportunity to showcase what they’ve learned about the Jamaican culture as well as showcase their own culture.