Sharing the world with young children
An Opportunity for Au Pairs to Volunteer
Volunteering is an important part of American life. Au Pair in America au pairs , from all over the world, have volunteered in many different places, including the schools and libraries in their communities.
What is “Meet Your Global Neighbor?”
“Meet Your Global Neighbor” is a volunteer project in Global Awareness. Au Pairs can volunteer in pre-school, elementary and middle school classrooms. You have the opportunity to share your culture, customs and language with young American children. The mission of this volunteer experience is to bring multi-cultural understanding into the classrooms and help children form positive first impressions of people from other countries.
Why be a Global Awareness Volunteer?
Are you interested in sharing your culture, customs and language with American children? If so, then this is the perfect opportunity for you.
How to Become a Global Awareness Volunteer
After you are settled in with your new Host Family, contact Gail Tomanelli, gaapia@gmail.com to let us know that you would like to volunteer as a Global Awareness Volunteer. We will provide you with all the necessary information for volunteering in the schools as well as support you as you determine what information you’d like to present. These are not formal presentations. You do not have to have teaching experience or public speaking experience. These presentations are fun and interactive and determined by the ages of the children. Here’s a favorite example of two different presentations for different age children. A Brazilian au pair presented to pre-school children in a nursery program. She told them about Carnival in her country and taught them how to make a mask for Carnival. Another Brazilian au pair presented to a 5th grade music class and taught the kids the samba!!
Remember, the goal is to help the children form a positive first impression of someone from another country, so what we strive for is “I met a lady from ____,” and she was really cool!”
Watch a video of a group of au pairs who brought their cultures to the Ronald McDonald House in NYC. http://www.youtube.com/embed/byVLggGcjXA”
“Little Linguists” is an opportunity to give mini-language lessons to pre-school children in libraries. Several au pairs have participated in this, teaching the kids to count in another language, learn fun vocabulary and listen to stories that are popular in another country.
The kids will have so much fun asking questions. You’ll be surprised at how interested they are in learning about you. You’ll have an opportunity to represent your country while you learn more about the American educational system and way of life.
All au pairs are encouraged to take advantage of this opportunity. You will receive a letter of appreciation for one presentation and a certificate of recognition for three. If you are interested in doing cultural presentations on an on-going basis, contact gaapia@gmail.com and find out how to become a Global Awareness Ambassador! Join in! Have fun!