New Hope Volunteers

Since 1998, More than 18000 happy volunteers


Orphanage/Childcare Project

volunteer in orphanage project in ecuador

  • Brighten up the lives of children from impoverished background
  • Work with local organizations to provide adequate care and support to children
  • Live with a local family and explore day-to-day Ecuadorian life
  • Practice Spanish while connecting with the best of nature and culture in Ecuador in your downtime

If you love working with children and have much care and attention to give, volunteer in the Orphanage program in Ecuador! Poverty, lack of education and limited governmental support are widespread problems for the children in Ecuador. Many children are left homeless, and they only have orphanages to turn to. The orphanages are doing their best to educate, clothe, house and feed the children, but they are also not well-funded and lack enough manpower to properly care for the orphans. New Hope partners up with the orphanages to help them reach out to more children. By volunteering in Ecuador, you'll be helping these orphanages to provide more care and attention to the children. Be a positive impact on the lives of Ecuadorian children, while soaking up the magnificent beauty of the country's natural landscapes.

Volunteers' Responsibilities

As a volunteer in Ecuador, you will be working with children from impoverished backgrounds at an orphanage or childcare. You may also work with volunteers or assistants at the center. Depending on your individual interests and skills, and on the needs of the local staff, your daily activities involve, but are not limited to:

  • Teaching basic English, Math, Science, Physical Education, or other subjects of interest
  • Provide care, love and attention to children
  • Providing daily care to the children such as preparing meals and watching over them
  • Help them with their homework
  • Participate in playtime activities
  • Educating on personal hygiene, and safety rules and precautions
  • Developing stimulating new ideas to interest the children to learn
  • Organizing and leading extracurricular activities such as games, sports, art, music, dancing, story-telling, drama lessons, etc.
  • Assisting the local staff with administrative duties, promoting fundraising activities, and helping to plan events and excursions for the children
How You Can Make a Difference

There is a growing number of abandoned children, especially those from poor and indigenous families. Volunteers will be working in local organizations and orphanages that help children. Beside providing necessities that can allow orphans and children-at-risk grow up better, these institutions also protect the children from exploitation. These institutions need all the help they can get, and your participation would help them reach their goals better. Deprived of parental love and support, the children will also appreciate the love and time that you devote to them.

Skills and Qualifications

There are no specific qualifications needed to join the Orphanage/Childcare project beyond a fluency in English and a preferred basic/intermediate fluency in Spanish. If you cannot speak Spanish, we recommend enrolling in our Spanish language program. Volunteers should also be enthusiastic, reliable, flexible, patient and strive to be good role models for the children. Experience working with street children is considered a plus. Volunteers must also respect the locals and the host organizations, along with their rules and projects.

Project Location

The project is located in Quito, the capital city and also the largest in Ecuador. Quito is also the first city to be termed a UNESCO World Heritage site. Quito has a rich pre-Columbian history. Found on the ruins of an Inca city, it is the least-altered historical center in Latin America. Lined with picturesque plazas, towering 17th-century churches and monasteries and beautifully restored mansions, you'll find yourself taken back in time as you wander past the architectural treasures. Beyond the city of Quito, Ecuador is a country brimming with nature's majesties. Go on a trek into the magical Andes, wildlife-watching at the verdant Amazonian rainforests, and experience the mythical Galapagos Islands with its panoramic and volcanic landscapes; there is something for everyone at Ecuador. A lovely trait of Ecuador is its climates, which at any one location, will very rarely change at all in the year. All climates can be found in Ecuador, from the tropical coastlines and Amazonian lowlands to the cooler and dryer climate at higher elevations.

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