Gringlish is part of the Espaanglisch Language School and is a program developed for students who already speak some English. The program is designed to encourage students to improve their speaking ability by interacting with fellow students and English-speaking teachers.
One of the reason why we have conversation classes is: First we use the money from gringlish to teach kids for free in Trujillo. Secondly, because we want to give an oportunity to people to practice their English with native speakers to a low price compare to different schools where is offered the same convesational classes for higher prices. We only charge 30 soles ($10 US) per month.
Potential volunteers need not speak any Spanish, and can stay for as little as 20 days (but obviously, the longer the better)
Minimum requirements:
- A minimum commitment of three weeks. Past volunteers have also recommended volunteers considering a longer commitment to get more out of the experience.
- Fluent English capabilities (Preferably a native speaker)
- Outgoing Personality: no fear of talking in front of strangers.
- Enthusiastic and imaginative
- 2-3 hours teaching per day – Tuesday to Friday
- selfconfidence
- Arrival a few days before the star of the term.
- The ability to Culturally Adapt to a non-Western world.
- Pre-arrival contact with Espaanglisch Manager David Mercedes. Some basic information is required before you show up. In addition in busy summer months interest in volunteering position often outweighs positions available. Therefore there is a selection process. We need to get to know you a little bit better before we can decide whether this project is suitable for you. All interested parties can always contact us at: davidmercedes@espaanglisch.com
Required Information:
a)Your name, birthdate, home country, and ideal travel dates.
b) Your first language and additional language abilities.
c) Your personal motivation to volunteer at Gringlish conversation class and why this volunteer position suits you.
d) Your personal expectations of the program. How do you imagine a typical day in Trujillo and in the classroom to be? It is naturally impossible to know this with certainty, but we like to know where you are coming from to be able to take care of any needs you have. This is important for us because we want to avoid disappointments later on.
f) A resume with previous education, volunteer, travel and work experiences. The format can be non traditional.
g) Your availability: when exactly do you want to come and for how long do you want to stay? Please send everything in one go. davidmercedes@espaanglisch.com
Benefits of this program
- A greater understanding of the charitable framework.
- Short time commitment (2 weeks) in comparison with other programs.
- Cheap Spanish lessons in
- No Spanish required to volunteer.
- A unique perspective on tourism, one that allows you to interact with the locals in your own language.
- Teaching experience is not necessary.
- Obtain teaching experience in a foreign setting.
What do I get in return?
Of course you get some things in return. All the volunteers working for Gringlish get:
- An equipped classroom.
- Volunteer excursions, weekly cookouts with the local teacher and the other volunteers.
- Cheap Spanish lessons in
- Training and guidance on speaking methods, both on general practices and the normal difficulties that come up in a classroom of native Spanish speaking students. You must be able to work independently, but we are always here to address complaints and concerns that arise in the classroom.
- Discount on the different service for all volunteers.
- 10% on Salsa lessons with Elmo Ladero at Salsexy.
- 20% on Peruvian Cooking Lessons in Huanchaco with María at Ce-beache.
- 25% on surf lessons and all the equipment with Chicho Huamanchumo at Muchik Surf School, etc.).
- Cheap long term accomodation in
Volunteer Housing Options
We have a family hous where you can stay cheaply with different rooms for different prices.
In
Señora Carmen. (also the espaanglisch School -
Things to use included in the price of the room: a bike, free use of the kitchen, internet access.Not food included, no hot showers yet.
Dormitory:
a room ( 2 beds ) per week s/.85 nuevos soles (27. US$ each)
Things to use included in the price of the room: a bike, free use of the kitchen, internet access. No food included, no hot showers yet.
Working Place
Gringlish is part of the Espaanglisch Language School and it has one location in
About Trujillo.
Traditional boats called "Caballitos de Totora" being used for so long by fishermen from Huanchaco.
Hermelinda Market, the second biggest market in Perú is located in Trujillo, you will find all you need here.
(Foto taken by Maaike Van Hoye in one of our shopping day)
The language school is situated in David's aunt's house in
Please send us your application from above to volunteer with us. davidmercedes@espaanglisch.com
Help us with some books to support our school, click here
Do I need to be a native English speaker?
Well, to be really honest, we would prefer to have native speaking teachers for our conversation club. However, if your conversational skills in English are just fantastic, you are more than welcome to our class.
Do I need to know Spanish?
No. Because the program is only to talk to students in English. In fact, what will happen is that the students will be happy to help you teaching you some words in Spanish. Great, isn’t it?!
Does Espaanglisch charge fees to volunteer?
No, you don’t get any money for teaching or for anything else. You do it for free.
Why do we have to write first, and can we not just read these web pages and go?
We must know who is coming and when, so that we can make the schools schedules up front to be able to promote classes to students.
Do I need a visa or inmmunizations to visit Peru?
For most people, no visa is necessary. As long as you arrive with a valid passport you will be fine. Currently, you can get up to six months on your tourist visa, so you should ask for the full six months when you arrive. It is easier not to mention anything about volunteering, as they may think you are here for paid work. Just let customs know you are here to travel. Once here, it is also possible to extend your visa by exiting and reentering the country.
In terms of immunizations, seek advice from your local doctor before you leave.
How much approximately would be my life expenses staying in Trujillo, teaching?
Life is cheap here, particularly if you arriving from Europe or the U.S.A – or even for that matter, from other parts of South America. We don’t charge a fee but it is your responsibility to pay for ALL your living expenses. Accommodation is around $30US a month, a typical main meal around $2, a big beer around $1.50, and a bottle of water around 30 cents.
How much you spend really depends on you – it could be as little as $300US a month- or much much more, depending what kind of stuff you do.
Laura Cronin, USA laura.a.cronin@gmail.com
A part from our "clases de niños", we also greatly enjoyed our evening conversation class. It was the largest of our classes, but definitely the easiest to conduct. The atmosphere in the class was extremely laid back, but the easy going nature of the class gave us a chance to get to know our students. We talked about everything from family to food, from entertainment to holidays, fears and dreams. Often times I felt a bit guilty, feeling that I was gaining far more from our students than My twin sister and I could ever teach them. Sure we were able to correct their English and introduce our students to new expressions, but for an hour every night they allowed us to experience Peru through the eyes and ears of a "peruano" and that was incredible. They told family stories, explained different traditions, gave travel tips, and offered a million and one food recommendations. The class was just a perfect introduction to our time Peru.
Looking back I couldn´t have asked for a better way to spend my initial months in South America. David and Carmen thank you so much for opening your house to us. Some of my greatest memories of my time in Trujillo/Huanchaco outside of teaching took place there. Loved our lunches, miss the music, our errand runs around Trujillo and fruit trials were great, and of course our late night snacks and talks at the kitchen table. It was all so awesome! (photo taken by Amy Cronin)
Paul Ryan, Ireland piggotscross@hotmail.com
Before my experience with Espaanglisch I had never taught classes before, so I was'nt very sure what to expect. I had a mixture of feelings, from slightly worried to very excited. It was the latter that would bear fruit so to speak.I was teaching in Huanchaco,Trujillo for two months. In my first month I taught two classes, I taught a class of kids, which I taught along with Jackie Brady in Las Lomas in Huanchaco. It was good fun and a lot of the kids were eager to learn. I also taught a conversation class for students that already had a good level English and wanted to practice in real conversation. This turned out to be a great way to find out a lot about Trujillo from locals as the class is all about talking, in English of course. In February I taught a basic 2 class,which I enjoyed tremendously. The students were great, it was like teaching friends and it gave me a good experience of teaching students at that level. Overall I'd say the experience from Espaanglisch is great along with the people of Huanchaco and Trujillo, the fogatas (bonfires) the food and the (attempted) salsa and much more it was a great recipe. If anyone is thinking of joining Espaanglisch I'd say go for it!
Feel free to email me on piggotscross@hotmail.com.