Volunteer with children in Romania and support the work of local teachers and caregivers in under-resourced kindergartens and daycare centers. You’ll gain practical childcare experience and learn new skills, which can help your future career. You’ll help where it’s need most and will contribute to sustainable, long-term goals.
Many care centers in Romania are overcrowded. Teachers and caregivers need your help to give a bigger focus to early childhood development. This way, we can make sure children reach the development goals typical for their age. You can also choose to work with children with special needs, or care for the elderly.
We’re based in the ancient city of Brasov, where you’ll get to live with a local host family. This will be your home away from home and you’ll learn all about Romanian hospitality, culture, and traditions.
Price Calculator
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Children aged 3-14 must be accompanied by at least one adult paying full price
We offer discounts for families and groups of friends travelling together. Call us on (+1) 212 244 7234 for more info.
Please note this calculator is for pricing information only. You will need to choose your final dates and duration on our application form.
Get a week free if you apply for a Flexi Trip before 15 March 2019. Read our T&Cs here.
When you apply you only pay $295, which comes off the total price.
Looking to do more than one project? Call us on (+1) 212 244 7234 to see if we can offer a discount.
Project Overview
Trip Format:
Flexi Trips - A flexible project that gives you the support and independence you need as you volunteer
Project Name:
Romania > Childcare
Start Dates:
Completely flexible dates
Minimum Duration:
Two Weeks
Requirements :
Anyone aged 16 or over can join
Is volunteer work with children in Romania right for me?
If you want to support children in need through education, this project is for you. It’s also a great option for those who want to work with special needs children, or the elderly.
You’ll gain practical experience, which will benefit your future career. You’ll also learn and develop skills like teamwork, leadership, and planning.
If you have loads of energy and love spending time playing games with children, working with children in Romania is definitely for you. You’ll support local teachers and caregivers, and our Projects Abroad staff members will be available to help you whenever you need it.
If you have any experience working with physically or mentally disabled people or the elderly, your skills will help a great deal. Local staff are often overstretched in their duties and would welcome your dedication and enthusiasm. They are always available to assist if you need any advice or guidance.
To work with children in Romania, you must do a basic medical check and get a Police Clearance Certificate. This is used to demonstrate that you are fit to work with children. Please note that it can take up to 40 days to receive clearance. You also have to be at least 18 years old to join.
Our Childcare Project in Romania runs year-round and you need to spend at least two weeks on the project. We encourage you to stay longer to make a bigger impact on the people you work with.
What will I be doing as a Childcare Volunteer in Romania?
As a Childcare volunteer in Romania, you'll work in a kindergarten, daycare center, special needs center, or a home for the elderly. You won’t be working alone. You’ll support local in these types of activities:
- Run educational activities to improve literacy, English, and support early childhood development
- Work with adults and children who have mental or physical disabilities
- Care for elderly people living in shelters or homes
- Work with other volunteers and local staff
- Assess and identify specific placement needs
Your work will focus on the following:
Improve literacy and English levels
English has become an important global language for business and tourism. So, English speaking ability from an early age will make many more opportunities available to children, especially in education or for employment.
As a Childcare volunteer working with children in Romania, you will offer invaluable help in introducing them to English. You’ll do this by improving their phonetics, pronunciation and grammar, through fun and stimulating games and activities. Come up to exciting ways to help children learn through play.
Work with adults and children who have mental or physical handicaps
The special needs centers we work with in Romania are often understaffed and low on resources. As a volunteer, you’ll be of great support with activities like reading to, playing games, and offering general care to the residents. This will free up local staff to do other crucial work that they never get to at the placement.
Care for elderly people
If you want to support the elderly, you can work at a shelter. You’ll play an important role in helping arrange activities to keep them mentally stimulated. You can also engage the physically active residents in outdoor activities and games to improve their health and well-being.
Work with international volunteers and local staff
One of the best things about volunteering abroad is that you get to meet other volunteers from all over the world. Make the most of this opportunity by sharing ideas for activities, lessons, and games at the regular workshops that we organize for you. Share these ideas with the staff at your placement to give them more ideas for improving the lives of those in need.
Assess and identify specific placement needs
To make sure we keep track of specific needs at our placements, we use checklists. We’ll show you exactly how to use them. You’ll assess the status of each child on a daily basis in areas like:
- Numeracy
- Literacy
- Fine motor skills
- Emotional abilities
- Social skills
- Hygiene
This information will be uploaded onto our Global Impact Database. This database helps us keep track of the development at our placements so that we continue to improve.
Where will I be working as a Childcare Volunteer in Romania?
Brasov
We’re based in the ancient city of Brasov. It’ll feel like a fairy tale come to life, with its terracotta roofs, gothic spires, medieval gateways, baroque buildings, and pedestrian-friendly streets. It might seem small and old-fashioned at first sight, but the city has the modern hustle and bustle of any other.
As a childcare volunteer in Romania, you can work at one of these placements:
- Daycare center
- Kindergarten
- Elementary school
- Center for mentally or physically disabled
- Shelter for the elderly
Which placement you work at will depend on what type of care work you would like to do. These facilities are often overcrowded, and local teachers and caregivers desperately need more support.
You’ll have free time to explore during some evenings and on weekends. There’s plenty to see in Brasov and the Transylvania region.
A typical day as a Childcare volunteer in Romania
A typical day will run from about 8am to 5pm.
Every day at work will be different. On some days you can do arts and crafts with the children, and on another you can play sports or teach English.
If you’re working with children, you’ll assist local teachers in the start of the morning. Later on, you can work on improving the English and literacy of the children.
If you work with disabled children and adults, or the elderly, your morning will start by helping serve breakfast. This will be followed by engaging in mentally stimulating activities, like reading, building puzzles, or playing simple games.
Lunch will take place between 12pm and 1:30pm. If your host family lives close to your placement, you can head home for lunch and a short rest. Alternatively, you’ll enjoy a packed lunch at your placement.
Your afternoons at work will mostly be spent doing more relaxed activities, like arts and crafts or some outdoor sports and games.
Throughout your visit, there will be plenty of time to explore and get to know your fellow volunteers. You’ll get to bond over breakfasts and dinners at your host family. Together, you’ll share this amazing culturally immersive experience.
What are the goals and impacts of childcare volunteering in Romania?
The main goal of this project is to support early childhood development at kindergartens and daycare centers that are in need. Projects Abroad has elected not to work with children in orphanages in Romania, but rather focus on community-based programs that allow children to remain within their families.
Kindergartens and daycare centers are often being overcrowded, and local teachers and caregivers therefore struggle to divide their attention equally. Because of this, some children may have trouble learning certain skills with these areas being neglected in the classroom.
There is also a great need for children to learn English from a young age. Being able to speak English well opens doors for further education and better jobs later in life. With your help, we can make sure more children learn important early childhood skills, and get more practice speaking English.
Our Childcare Project in Romania also extends to children and adults with physical and mental disabilities, as well as the elderly. Many of these care centers are understaffed and under-resourced. You can help local staff with daily tasks and offer much needed kindness and attention to residents.
We have identified five sustainable, long-term goals which guide our work and which are in our Childcare Management Plan for Romania :
- Increase literacy
- Improve English
- Promote early childhood development
- Improve levels of stimulation for each child
- Increase emotional care and support to each child
Help us achieve these long-term goals by joining us as a Childcare volunteer in Romania.
Management Plans
We set out the aims and objectives of our projects in documents called Management Plans. We use them to properly plan the work you’ll do. They also help us measure and evaluate our achievements and impact each year.
Ultimately, our Management Plans help us make our projects better. This in turn means you get to be part of something that makes a real impact where it’s needed. Read more about our Management Plans.
Measuring Our Impact
Our projects work towards clear long-term goals, with specific annual objectives. Every volunteer and intern we send to these projects helps us work towards these goals, no matter how long they spend on our projects.
Every year we take a step back and look at how much progress we've made towards these goals. We put together a Global Impact Report, which documents our achievements. Find out more about the impact our global community of volunteers, interns and staff make, and read the latest report.
I feel that my experience has been, overall, very rewarding although emotional at times and highly beneficial for the children. Certainly in that the time we were able to devote to them and the sort of activities we did with them were so well received and would not have been available to them had we not been there.
Lucy D
Volunteer with Children in Romania
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