Aldea Yanapay - Community Volunteering

This volunteer project focuses on helping the local people, especially underprivileged kids, through different workshops and activities such as teaching English and writing, art projects, music, and more. The after-school program in the "Escuela Yanapay" is for children from various public schools where they can do their homework making use of the library and the materials that we have. There is also emphasis on the arts (theater, music, painting, etc.), as well as other topics that are important in today's world. The School is open to many different forms of cultural expression such as meditation, massages, capoeira, circus arts etc. As a volunteer you can help wherever you are most needed, but you can also specify an area you are most interested in by talking to the Volunteer Coordinator.

This project is a unique opportunity for you to fill a critical gap in education and community development in Cusco. The rewards go both ways, as you will also benefit enormously from learning about Peruvian culture and history while interacting with the local people. Kids can go to Escuela Yanapay for the after-school program either in the morning or in the afternoon, depending whether they attend public and formal school in the morning or in the afternoon. So there are some kids that go in the morning, and some (most of them) kids go in the afternoon. The morning shift at Yanapay is usually between 09:00 and 12:00 and the afternoon shift between 14:00 and 18:00.

Volunteers are divided between the two shifts and then, divided in smaller groups according to the age of the kids. Volunteers work with their groups in different workshops which are: art & expression, library, play centre (or games), Tutorials (further lessons on the subjects they see at school) and computer science. Also, depending on the interests and skills of each volunteer, new workshops could be organized each weeks such as music, theatre, etc. Depending on your Spanish level, volunteers will be able to work in different workshops. There will always be at least one volunteer that knows a lot of Spanish per group of kids so those volunteers who know less, are usually able to help them.

All volunteer projects start on Mondays. You should, however, plan to arrive in Cusco on Thursday as you have a Welcome Package. This is an excellent introduction to the city of Cusco and the surrounding area and a great way to start your volunteer project. It includes a welcome drink, free Wi-Fi, a day tour to the Sacred Valley and a 2 hour horseback riding tour.