CREANDO Kindergarten

This year, a group of parents worked with all their heart and dedication to create an amazing kindergarten in Samaipata, Bolivia. We believe in an education that’s based on love, that promotes integration, harmony, and full development of all dimensions of a human being: physical, cognitive, emotional, social, creative, ecological, productive and spiritual. It's all worth the effort: the growth we see in our kids is mind-blowing.

Our main objective is to generate an inclusive and integrating environment that promotes affection, respect, imagination, creativity, flexibility, freedom, enjoyment and learning for children from 3 to 5 years old.

Pedagogy 3000 is the basis of our curriculum. Our objectives and academic projects are ordered in the following seven dimensions of human development: physical/ movement, cognitive, social/multicultural, aesthetic/creative/artistic, ecological, productive, and personal/emotional development.

We have a great program. For example, a normal day might start with yoga, meditation in movement, and chants or words through which children express gratitude towards all the blessings we have.

Then, children follow a program that is designed to allow for their integrated growth and learning.

In gardening class, the children follow the entire process of planting and caring for their vegetable garden. In this way, they develop consciousness and love towards nature and life, learn how to grow their own food and reflect on important values about the human relationship to the earth.

Ceramics class is the place to let their creativity and artistic talent go wild, as they create personal inspired pieces under the guidance of a renowned local ceramicist.

In cooking class, each child is responsible for contributing an ingredient. Other ingredients we take from the garden. Using their sense of touch and smell, the children are actively involved in cutting, preparing, and measuring ingredients as they appreciate different colors and textures. They participate in watching the ingredients transform into a yummy final dish, which includes everything from pizzas and breads to cakes and salads. The final step is the communal sharing of the meal, and inviting the parents to try the final dish.

Every month, there is a specific project, or theme, that provides the core for our teaching objectives. Based around that singular theme, we use art, role playing, games, dance, music, experiments, and visits outside the kindergarten to broaden and deepen this theme. Each activity is engaging in its own way, drawing on different aspects of the child's learning process. In this approach, children are the protagonists in their own learning. The teachers facilitate that process, using different tools and strategies as appropriate to each child.

As we are in the process of building the school so it can be self-sustainable, right now our costs exceed our income. Here in a small town in Bolivia, there are many families that cannot pay the monthly fee necessary to meet our monthly costs. And we want to ensure that all children who want to attend have the chance to join. In order to close the gap, we have worked hard to raise money by hosting garage sales and fundraising in creative ways here in Bolivia. However, this has not been enough.

That is why we are asking for your kind support.

Our monthly shortfall is $394 per month. Our expenses are rent, teachers’ salaries, materials, electricity, water, and cleaning. If we can raise the full amount of $2760, this will guarantee the kindergarten will continue to function for the next 7 months, and conclude the first academic year.

Thank you so much for taking the time to read about our awesome little crew. Please share this with anyone you think may be able to help us. We are so thankful for any donation you can offer!

With love and gratitude, from Jardin Creando Samaipata.