Summer in Costa Rica

As the summer approaches, I am getting excited about my upcoming trip to Costa Rica. During my four weeks in Heredia, Costa Rica, I will be staying with a local family, immersing myself in the Spanish language. After two weeks of study at the local college, I will be doing community service at the local school and environmental center. Of the many activities I will be participating in during my stay in Costa Rica, I am most excited to be helping the underprivileged children at the schools. I have been blessed to have an education which has put me in a prostitution to succeed in the future. I hope to give back when I go to Costa Rica, passing on the love of learning which has been instilled in me during my time at DCDS. This experience will help me achieve most of the 8 IB learning outcomes. I will definitely gain awareness of my strengths and weakness in the realm of leadership. I have never previously worked with younger children for an extended period of time and the time I spend at the school will help me learn communication skills which I can bring back to my local community when I return in August.

Along with working at the schools, I will be helping maintain the environment in Heredia by planting trees and taking weeds out of the soil. Not only will I gain an appreciation of the environment, but I will also learn the value of tough manual labor. This will help me understand learning outcome #5: Showing commitment and perseverance in my activities.

Another important aspect of my trip will be immersion in the Spanish language. I have always thought that in order to show proper respect in a conversation with a person of a different culture, I should be able to communicate with them in their first language. Seeing as Spanish is become of a prominent part of North American culture, I think it is best that I improve my Spanish speaking skills. This is definitely an issue of global political importance because communication cross culturally are severely limited. I hope that putting myself in a different situation and taking myself out of my comfort zone will help me gain self-confidence in unusual situations. Another skill I can use when I return to Country Day next fall.