Care and Teach Underprivileged Children in Mekong Delta, Vietnam

Company : Volunteer Vietnam
Location : Vi Thanh City, Hau Giang Province, Vietnam
Duration: 2 weeks to 3 months
Approx Costs: 750 to 2500 $ Dollars (US)

Our volunteer program takes place in Vi Thanh city in the heart of the Mekong Delta, Vietnam.

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Volunteers will be immersed in the traditional Vietnamese lifestyle while having access to weekend getaways such as Ho Chi Minh City or the tropical Phu Quoc Islands.

Volunteers have chance to assist caring and teaching around 100 abandoned children at Hoa Mai Children Home and Bui Thi Xuan primary school in Vi Thanh city.

Hoa Mai Children Home

Hoa Mai Children Home is the half way home for 50 abandoned children. Their families are broken due to the parent divorce or financial difficulties. The home takes them in and give them accommodation, food and arrange for them to go to schools for general education. There are only two care-givers who look after the children and they are burdened with the task of proving enough care and education for the children.

Volunteers are expected to help with the following programs:

Helping the youngest children aged 4 to 6 years old with daily life activities such as : bathing, dressing, cleaning face, teeth
Assisting with cleaning and tiding the bedrooms and living environment
Assisting our Vietnamese English teacher to teach basic English, arts, crafts, music and sports
Assisting with taking the children for outing trips for sports and entertainment
Teaching other life skills

Bui Thi Xuan Primary School

Bui Thi Xuan Primary School is a daily boarding school for 100 underprivileged children from Vi Tan village. Due to the financial needs, their parents have to move the big cities to work. The children are left behind with their relatives such as grandparents, ants and uncles. The children attend the school for an education illiteracy program which they are left behind many subjects especially English, arts, crafts and sports.

Volunteers are expected to help with the following programs:
Assisting our staff to teach basic English, personal hygiene
Teaching arts, crafts and sports
Teaching games life skills

Volunteers will work in a team with our local staff and other volunteers to carry out the above activities.On your arrival, our team will give you a few days of orientation and training. We will help you to plan activities and lessons and accompany you to the placement sites to conduct the activities.

Typical Day

Morning session starts at around 8:00 AM: Volunteers will assist to teach at Bui Thi Xuan primary school or help care the young children at Hoa Mai Children Home.

Lunch time : you will come back to the volunteer house to have lunch with other volunteer and have a little nap

Afternoon session start at around 2:00 PM . Volunteers help with caring and teaching the young children at Hoa Mai Children Home or assisting with cleaning and tiding.

Monday, Wednesday and Thursday evening session start at around 6:30 PM. Volunteers assist with our Vietnamese English teacher to teach English to the older children.

Some morning and afternoon, volunteers assist with taking the children at Hoa Mai Children Home for outing trips to a soccer fields or swimming pool.

Free-time Activities

Vi Thanh city is a small city with a population of about 60,000 and is the capital of the Hau Giang province. The city is surrounded by many villages and the landscape is made up of rivers, lakes, and fruit gardens. Some free time activities we recommend are:

Biking along the rivers and through the villages to discover many beautiful photo opportunities.
Hang out at cafes along the river. Here you can interact with local people who are eager to practice English and learn about you.
The volunteer house is located near a large shopping center, Vincom Plaza. Here volunteers can have a coffee or see a movie at the cinema.
We can help arrange for you to take a boat trip going in delta to see the surrounding area.

Your weekends start from Friday afternoon every week and if you would like an away weekend and travel, our onsite staff are happy to help arrange trips for you.

Travel activities we recommend are:

Can Tho City: Can Tho is the capital of Mekong Delta and is one hour away from the volunteer house by car or bus. There you can explore floating markets and the traditional Mekong Delta lifestyle. There are many tours available in this area.

Phu Quoc Islands: Phu Quoc is an island paradise known for beautiful white sand beaches. Volunteers can take a 1 hour bus ride to Rach Gia Harbor, and from there catch a speed boat to the islands. This area is highly recommended during your stay in southern Vietnam!

Da Lat city: Da Lat is a mountainous city known for the beautiful landscape, flowers and cool weather. It is one hour flight from Can Tho International airport. There are daily flights between these two places. Our staff can help arrange this trip for you.

Ho Chi Minh City: Volunteers can spend weekends in the city taking either a 3 hour bus ride or by catching a flight from nearby Can Tho airport. Ho Chi Minh is a large, vibrant Vietnamese city with many activities for volunteers to enjoy. Spend a weekend away shopping in markets, enjoying a wide array of dining options, or visiting cultural & historical landmarks.

Start Dates

The program is available around the year. The preferred start dates are on the 1st and 15th of a month ( volunteers can come around those dates). Due to Tet holiday, there are no start dates during the first half of February

Costs / Benefits

- Placement arrangements: volunteer permit/ visa approval/ preparation for accommodation and support staff
- Pre-departure information support: emails/ Skype conversation/ Phone
- Pick up and training on arrival ( culture and language training/ city tour/ work guidance and team building)
- Accommodation ( volunteer house/ shared rooms )
- Meals ( 03 meals per day from Monday to Friday/ breakfast for Saturday morning)
- Transportation to work ( volunteer car/taxi)
- Support staff 24/7 who always accompany with you to placement sites to help with translation work and activities.
- 5% of fee is used to buy needed materials and supplies for the activities
- Completion Certificate
- Warming meals with other volunteers and local friends which gives you a deeper taste inside Vietnamese culture and language
- Guidance and support for sightseeing during the free time
- We accommodate volunteers in a hotel where they share rooms with maximum of 02 other volunteers. The hotel is located in the heart of Vi Thanh city, Vietnam. Rooms equipped with AC, private toilets and bathrooms.
- Volunteers are provided 3 meals per day from Monday to Friday plus breakfast on Saturday morning by our cook Mrs. Hai. You’ll have a chance to enjoy both Western and Vietnamese cuisines in the local dining room. You should budget for all other meals during the weekend. We will recommend some local restaurants near the Green House where they serve Vietnamese food which is delicious.We provide safe transportation to go to work by a volunteer car.

Requirements

- Minimum age: 18
- Volunteers do not need any special skills to volunteer with us. You just need to have passion in helping others in need.
- Required documents: Application Form/ Copy of passport/ Copies of Education Certificates. Volunteers should send us the documents at around 45 days before the starting dates. We will arrange a visa approval letter based on the documents.