The Polish Foundation is searching for 14 European volunteers who would like to join our Erasmus+ project “(Dis)appearing (dis)abilities” in October 2018 until June/September 2019 (depending on the hosting organization) in Poland.
Volunteering activities will take place in 7 Receiving Organizations: 3 special kindergartens, a regular kindergarten for children with special nutritional needs, a primary school with integrative classes, the Polish Robert Schuman Foundation and European Integration Club at the School Complex in Wojkowice. Apart of the last organization which is in Wojkowice in the Silesian region, all of the organizations are in Warsaw.
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WHO ARE WE SEARCHING FOR?
We are looking for volunteers aged between 18 and 30 years, legally residing in one of the Program or Partner Countries. We seek a balance of varied ages, genders and nationalities amongst our volunteers. As required by Erasmus+ Programme, all candidates from the European Union must be registered in European Solidarity Corps database.
We are not looking for experienced volunteers but those that would learn a lot during the service in a given receiving organization.
Apart from personal motivation of volunteers our requirement is volunteers’ strong will of learning Polish language after selection procedure successfully ends. We need selected volunteers to know a few crucial phrases and already have substantial vocabulary of Polish at the moment they start their project. Why is this important? Because they will work with disabled children and youth, which often does not speak English or any other language.
ABOUT THE PROJECT “(DIS)APPEARING (DIS)ABILITIES WITH SCHUMAN VOLUNTEERS”
We want to change the way of thinking about disabilities by focusing on abilities – actions that we can undertake to increase the participation of people with disabilities in our society. Main aim of the project is to promote common European values as identified in article 2, including solidarity, tolerance and respect for human dignity and rights by increasing knowledge about and understanding for people with disabilities who face the risk of exclusion & marginalization. Apart of European volunteering mobilities workshops for regular kindergarten children and kindergarten&primary school teachers will be held.
To integrate all volunteers, apart of activities in particular Receiving Organization, common activities for all Volunteers will be organized. All olunteers:
will be invited to participate in 5 study visits in institutions related to special and integrative education. During each visit participants will be introduced by special/integrative education experts how to work with people with special needs and organize integrative activities.
will prepare together a happening promoting inclusion of people with disabilities and to pay attention to problems that those persons face in public spaces. The happening will be organized in a public place at least twice – in Warsaw and Wojkowice/Katowice.
will write blogs dedicated to their experience in the form of articles, photographs, audio/video materials. If you secretly dream of becoming a published author – you are in luck! Each month the volunteers write (at least) one article about their volunteering experiences in Poland. These posts are published on the Foundation’s website and/or Facebook. Previous blogs you can find on the website www.erasmus.schuman.pl. will take part in preparation of the Schuman Parade&Schumanville, events organized by CO to celebrate Europe Day in the center of Warsaw. Volunteers together with their RO and CO will plan&organize one tent in Schumanville devoted to European volunteering & raising awareness about the needs of people with disabilities.
will take part in “internal on-arrival training” organized by the Coordinating Organization. The first days followed by volunteers’ arrival to Warsaw will be spent altogether, not in particular Receiving Organization. The Coordinating Organization will prepare integration activities, trainings and will deal with some organizational things.
will participate in monthly meetings. Once a month all Schuman volunteers living Warsaw (and sometimes also those in Wojkowice) will have a meeting in the Foundation and occasionally outside the Foundation. These meetings organized to spend time all together with volunteers and coordinators, the coordinators always prepare activities for the volunteers: concerning evaluation of last month, preparing common activities or just integrating.
PROJECT 1
Receiving Organization: the Polish Foundation
Number of volunteers: 2, therein 1 from Partner Country, 1 from Programme Country
Project duration: 1st October 2018 – 30th September 2019
Description of Organization:
Foundation is an non-profit organization which focuses on strengthening the civil society, supporting social initiatives and active citizenship, and promoting the European integration process. The projects of the foundation aim to engage young people in action and to inform people about their rights and responsibilities as Polish and European citizens, fulfilling thus an educational role. The foundation also organizes seminars, debates, conferences and other events on different themes related to the European Union or important social and political issues, and it collaborates with EU institutions, many NGO’s from the same field and with over 400 European School Clubs from Poland and other countries. Description of volunteers tasks at the organization: The volunteers’ main task is to do school visits in the European School Clubs across Poland and give presentations and workshops about different types of disabilities, their own countries (traditions, values, young people lifestyle) or other topics, such as European Union institutions, volunteering, ecology etc. They are expected to create an interactive and engaging presentation, using non-formal methods of education. The volunteers help prepare for the biggest event of the foundation, the Schuman Parade, which is in May, and which requires a lot of work and preparation. The volunteers write a blog about their volunteering experience, sharing what they learnt in their work, what interactions they have with other volunteers and what cultural differences/similarities they observed as foreigners in Poland. They also prepare a fanpage called Schuman Volunteer Experience – a compilation of interesting articles, interviews, information on youth mobility. Another task is to hold an volunteering info point at the foundation’s office and inform anyone who is interested about international volunteering and other youth mobility opportunities offered by the EU.
PROJECT 2
Receiving Organization: European Integration Club
Number of volunteers: 2, therein 1from Partner Country, 1 from Programme Country
Project duration: 1st October 2018 – 30th June 2019
Description of Organization:
European Club is an informal union of students and teachers interested in the EU, other cultures and with the goal to learn and make a change for their own future and in their local communities. European Integration Club at the School Complex in Wojkowice is a European Club in a high school in Silesia. This post-industrial area has not fully recovered from closure of many factories and mines. Unemployment is high and in Wojkowice, the impact is very visible. Small town community needs more activities for young people and volunteers with their fresh energy can provide just that (at least within after-school activities). Description of volunteers tasks at organization: Volunteers primarily work with the European Club members and prepare presentations/workshops and other activities with the goal of making students in the Complex of Schools aware of issues related to disabilities and Europe (culture, customs, traditions, political and economic situation, attitude towards European integration, an average citizen life conditions and the reality of everyday life etc.). During long breaks between lessons volunteers can organize activities in the hallway in school. They have their own “voluteering corner”, where they can use to inform the students about EU programs, interesting initiatives and useful information. Volunteers are also asked to organize individual (English) conversations with high school students and help them improve their language skills. Volunteers can also cooperate with local youth club, primary school and kindergarten. From time to time they will be invited to make their presentations/workshops about disabilities or about their country in other schools in the area. Volunteers have a chance to learn how to change their own ideas for non-formal learning into practice. The volunteers will also assist at a youth day-room “Tlen”, where will prepare activities for children according to their interest.
PROJECT 3
Receiving Organization: Special Kindergarten No 213 in Warsaw
Number of volunteers: 1 from Partner Country
Project duration: 1st October 2018 – 30th June 2019
Description of Organization:
Special Kindergarten No 213 in Warsaw is an educational establishment for mentally handicapped children and youth. There are 45 children and adolescents (3-25 years-old) divided into 8 groups in the kindergarten. Most pupils have disabilities accompanied by other developmental disorders, e.g. autism, ADHD, behavioral disorders and physical disabilities. Most of them do not speak. Description of volunteers tasks at organization: Volunteer might help in two different groups of children – 1 group of autistic children between 6-10 years old and 1 group for children with physical and mental disabilities. After volunteer would help in their everyday activities. Since children are usually more self-sufficient there are group activities, games and individual therapy. Sometimes the volunteer would help the children go to the bathroom or help the teachers change them as well. Volunteer learn a lot about different kinds of disabilities and the way to work with such children. Such environment offers an opportunity to overcome your own boundaries, break stereotypes and to seek for ways of spreading awareness about mentally disabled outside the kindergarten.
Project 4
Receiving Organization: Special Kindergarten No 393 in Warsaw
Number of volunteers: 4, therein 2 from Programme and 2 from Partner countries
Project duration: 1 st October 2018 – 30th June 2019
Description of Organization:
Special Kindergarten No 393 is an educational establishment for physically disabled children (cerebral spastically, genetics definitive etc.). There are 30 children aged 3-10 divided into 4 groups. Some children are able to walk and some are able to communicate verbally but some need help with all basic movements and operations. The pedagogical team is supported by specialists that lead different therapeutic activities (such as speech therapy, dog therapy and others). Description of volunteers tasks at organization: Volunteers participate in the classes and help the staff. They help changing children’s clothes, feeding the children or help them eat their meals, go to the toilet. There is a special kindergarten plan which educators must follow but there is also some space for their own creativity (proposing theatre instead of reading to children for example or exercising their artistic talent preparing materials and scenery for kindergarten plays and seasonal ornaments etc.). Volunteers can also suggest educational group activities and/or individual work process for one child, all under supervision of an educator. Volunteers are also involved in preparations of festivities for the occasion of traditional Polish holidays (e.g. short theatre plays for parents). Volunteers can learn a lot about different methods of working with children with various disabilities. They have a chance to see therapeutic meetings, learn about adapted computer programs and didactic tools.
PROJECT 5
Receiving organzation: Special Kindergarten No 245 for Visually Impaired Children Warsaw
Number of volunteers: 2 from Programme Countries
Project duration: 1 st October 2018 – 30th June 2019
Description of Organization: The special kindergarten no. 245 takes care of visually impaired children from 3 to 6 years of age. At present there are 54 children with various visual defects in the kindergarten. They are divided into 4 age groups: 3-year-olds, 4-year-olds, 5-year-olds and 6-year-olds. Imagine a regular kindergarten full of children with glasses 🙂 Apart from the didactic and educational functions the kindergarten also fulfils prophylactic and therapeutic functions. We perform oculist diagnoses and provide visual treatment for our children. We provide oculist treatment for children who have been diagnosed with different visual defects, squint eye or lazy eye. We have a well-equipped room in which children under professional supervision perform their orthoptic exercise using specialist equipment. We also provide professional psychological, logopedic and educational therapy. Apart from regular activities we also organize extra activities, e.g. musical lessons, gymnastic, art, dancing, English and dog therapy classes. Description of volunteers tasks at organization: Volunteers work in group and, should the need arise, also directly with individual children that might need more assistance. They teach the children to use the equipment available on the premises, assist during the teacher-managed group classes, additional activities, help with typical self-care activities, such as personal hygiene, help at eating and dressing. Since this is a kindergarten that prepares children for school specifically, children’s time is full of activities prepared by the teachers. There is little time for playing, which is the time volunteers are welcome to propose their own activities and can count on teachers to support them. Considering the described activities in which the volunteers would be executing or participating in we believe that they would have the possibility to develop their pedagogical skills in the area of working with children with special needs, as well as participating in various workshops and trainings organised by and/or in the kindergarten. We are also aware of the fact that working with visually impaired is very demanding and that volunteers would need specific guidelines and training to prepare them and help them with their work. Verbal communication between the volunteers and the children is very important, especially that our children due to their visual impairment cannot rely on non-verbal communication so much. It is for this reason as well that we would put special attention on the knowledge of Polish language of the volunteers. Polish language course would be provided with the mentioned goal as well as the aim to make the interaction and communication between the volunteers and the kindergarten staff easier.
PROJECT 6
Receiving Organization: Primary School with integrative classes nr 318
Number of volunteers: 1 from Programme Country
Project duration: 1st October 2018 – 30th June 2019
Description of Organization:
Public school, designed for children aged 6-14. Its placed in Ursynów district in Warsaw – in very well communicated area with other parts of the city. Our mission is to integrate kids with special needs. On each level (I-VIII) we have at least one integrative class which is dedicated for kids with disabilities (autism, Asperger syndrome, physical disabilities, aphasia etc.) . Integrative class consists maximum 20 kids including 5 children with special needs. We have 21 classes, 10 of them are integrative ones. In those groups two teachers are co-working, one of them is a help for special needs students. For them school provides extra classes like: sensory integration, Social Skills Training, psychoeducational classes, speech therapy, individual lectures. Since 2017 we have opportunity for older pupils to continue educational process in the bilingual polish – spanish class. Our children spend free time in a dayroom, where we provide to them daily activities including art workshops, reading workshops, integrative and psychoeducational games, physical plays, individual work with kids if it is needed. Description of volunteers tasks at organization: The volunteer will assist and propose his/her activities for children (including children with special needs) in the school day-room. He/she will co-organize short art, music, movement and language activities. He/she will work with groups and individual children, participate in sensory integration sessions, psychoeducation, revalidation, speech therapy to get to know working methods with children with different disabilities. The volunteer will help pupils with less educational opportunities to prepare for classes and assist them during everyday activities. He/she will participate in organizing special events & in trips outside the school.
PRACTICAL ARRANGEMENTS
Pocket money: each volunteer will get the amount of 120€ (in Polish currency – Polish złoty) per month – in cash or by a bank transfer (if they open a bank account in Poland). Food money: each volunteer will receive a certain amount of money for food per month (80- 110€ in Polish currency, depending on the exchange rate of the project) Local transport: transport cards are provided – for volunteers in Warsaw a card for area 1 (strefa 1) is provided. The city has 2 areas of transport, however area 1 includes all main districts of Warsaw. In Wojkowice the volunteers will receive a travel card for all Silesian agglomeration. Small cities like Bedzin and Wojkowice are interconnected so when you go by bus you can hardly notice when one city ends and another begins. Accommodation: The Coordinating Organization will provide accommodation for the volunteers – the volunteers will share flats. The apartments will be rented by the Coordinating Organization for the entire time of volunteers’ mobilities and it is equipped with all necessary utilities. Volunteers are obliged to keep the flat clean 🙂 In Warsaw volunteers will live in 2 or 3 apartments. Up to 6 volunteers share the apartment. Often volunteers share a bedroom with another volunteer. Volunteers hosted at Wojkowice will live in Będzin, a town close to Wojkowice. It takes about 30 minutes to get from the flat to the school by bus. In Wojkowice 2 volunteers will share a flat, each will have own bedroom.
Living costs (cost of water, electricity, internet, etc.) will be covered by the Coordinating Organization with a limit up to 90-110 złoty per month (depending on the flat and heating season). Language support: for volunteers with no knowledge of Polish (A1) online course will be provided. For volunteers with any knowledge of Polish (more than A1), language course at language school will be organized – for the first 2-3 months, 1,5 hours twice a week. Polish phone card: will be provided by the Coordinating Organization 🙂 Insurance: Volunteers from the European Union are obliged to have European Health Insurance Card, if possible. If not, they are required to have a confirmation that they are not authorized to receive one. The Sending Organization is responsible for enrolling the volunteer to insurance plan at CIGNA insurance company, which is valid if EHIC is not applicable. Travel to&from mobility: the costs are covered up to limits of the European Commission based on the travel distance: For travel distances between 10 and 99KM: 20 EUR per participant For travel distances between 100 and 499 KM: 180 EUR per participant For travel distances between 500 and 1999 KM: 275 EUR per participant For travel distances between 2000 and 2999 KM: 360 EUR per participant For travel distances between 3000 and 3999 KM: 530 EUR per participant For travel distances between 4000 and 7999 KM: 820 EUR per participant For travel distances of 8000 KM or more: 1500 EUR per participant Visa and related costs: are covered by the Coordinating Organization. Coordinating & Sending Organization will help to obtain the visa (if needed) and register in Poland. Medical tests: volunteers hosted in kindergartens and school with integrative classes will have to undertake sanitary medical tests, as it is required by polish law. Coordinating organization will cover its’ costs and assist in the process.
Selection process
We will study carefully all application and selected candidates will be invite for Skype interview. The selection of volunteers will take place in the coming weeks.
For the selection of the volunteers we will need:
– CV with picture (made in the last month) with skype name included
– Motivational letter, writing that your sending organisation will be “Building Bridges”. We ask all candidates to send a specific letter of motivation – why they want to volunteer with us rather than just a general EVS one. The volunteer is chosen according to his/her motivation and interest to the project and to the activities. It will be paid special attention to cover letters.
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[button color=»orange2″ link=»https://www.dropbox.com/sh/cqd30j12iat0quv/AAASMnNxA1tknyAl63Y6emnOa?dl=0″ size=»bigger» target=»_blank» icon=»momizat-icon-file3″]Application form Building Bridges[/button]
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All documents written in english you can send to: asociacionbb@gmail.com with subject “EVS Poland Kamocka+PROJECT NAME”.
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