VOLUNTEERING PROJECT IMPROVE YOURSELF CZECH REPUBLIC 21st September 2020 - 31st July 2021 Our project Improve yourself should strenghten multicultural feeling not only in the target group of kids and young people but also betwwen the people from the local communities and in our region. We would like to also share the idea of volunteering. We want to offer our volunteers to gain experience in working with children and young people, including those with fewer opportunities. Volunteers will learn about non-formal education and get the opportunity to develop a range of competencies that can help them in a future personal and proffesional life. The project will be attended by 7 young volunteers and divided into 4 activities – 4 hosting organizations. Two volunteers will be involved in the activities of Trendum, other 2 will collect a new experiences in Salesian leisure time center Don Bosco. Two volunteers will join the activities in Primary school and kindergarten in Staré Město and one volunteers will be hosted by Diocesan charity Ostrava-Opava. Trendum will be also in a role of coordinator of this project. We’ll arrange all documents, manage finances, taka care of the support of volunteers and all necessery matters like accommodation, travel costs, pocket money etc. Dear future volunteers, we’re glad that you will join our project Improve youself. Please read the following information carefully in order to be prepared before your arrival to Czech Republic.
Transcript
V O L U N T E E R I N G P R O J E C T
IMPROVE YOURSELFCZECH REPUBLIC
21st September 2020 - 31st July 2021
Our project Improve yourself should strenghten multicultural feelingnot only in the target group of kids and young people but also betwwenthe people from the local communities and in our region. We would liketo also share the idea of volunteering. We want to offer our volunteers to gain experience in working withchildren and young people, including those with fewer opportunities.Volunteers will learn about non-formal education and get theopportunity to develop a range of competencies that can help them ina future personal and proffesional life. The project will be attended by 7 young volunteers and divided into 4activities – 4 hosting organizations. Two volunteers will beinvolved in the activities of Trendum, other 2 will collect a newexperiences in Salesian leisure time center Don Bosco. Twovolunteers will join theactivities in Primary school and kindergarten in Staré Město and onevolunteers will be hosted by Diocesan charity Ostrava-Opava. Trendum will be also in a role of coordinator of this project. We’llarrange all documents, manage finances, taka care of the support ofvolunteers and all necessery matters like accommodation, travelcosts, pocket money etc.
Dear future volunteers, we’re glad that you willjoin our project Improveyouself. Please read thefollowing informationcarefully in order to beprepared before yourarrival to CzechRepublic.
TRENDUM, O.P.S.
OUR TEAM
www.trendum.cz
https://www.facebook.com/trendum/
Trendum, o.p.s. is a nonprofit and educational organization focusedon educating professionals and developing the key competencies ofyoung people. Our target group are youth workers (mainly from non-profit organizations and leisure centers), young people, priests andpastoral workers. We work with a number of partners from the CzechRepublic as well as from across Europe.We used to realize activities like international training courses foryouth workers and sometimes also youth exchanges for youngpeople through the use of new and nontraditional methods. We arepartners in some strattegic partnerships too. Education of priestsand pastoral workers is a unique project about developing the softskills of this specific group. We also run board game club foreveryone who loves board games or any type of games. We organizea festival of non-traditional games every year. Trendum iscoordinating volunteering projects for several years. We would liketo focus more on a topic of volunteering, build a volunteering centreand start new activities for local community in a future.
Ostrava Salesian leissure time center Don Bosco is a place forchildren and youth, especially from socially excluded areas inOstrava. The Center's mission is to educate and educate mainlyRomani children from Ostrava based on Christian principles, whosemain goal is to prepare them for life in society. The center is for themthe place of admission, a place to meet Christian values, a placewhere they can acquire the skills needed for life, as well asplaygrounds where they can meet friends and have fun.Centre offers many activities like Oratory - an open club for children,an oratory, is a place for sports, entertainment and education. Thereare also many regular sport, culture, creative, dance and otheractivities. Centre realizes many summer camps and weekend events,cultural events or sport tournaments. The main activities in which will be volunteers involved in DonBosco, will be direct work with children and young people in theoratory - open club for children, helping workers in the program'sOratory in the streets with the pre-schoolers, assistance in variousworkshops. Volunteers will also have the opportunity to run theirown mini-projects.
KINDERGARTEN AND PRIMARY SCHOOL
This school is a community school in the social and cultural spheres,works with the local community, and we often involve them in ourwork. School organizes many public events. It’s divided into twoparts kindergarten and primary school.Kindergarten is focused on pre-school education. It is attended byapproximately 60 children aged 3 to 6 years.Usually works with twoseparate groups of children. Within the school, there is a LearningStart program, focused on building the skills, attitudes andknowledge needed to solve the challenges and demands of today orthe future. In addition to classical lessons, school offers activities in a schoolclub. The school club main activities include relaxation activities,help with homework, common reading, outdoor activities etc. The main activities at primary school and kindergarten in StaréMěsto implemented by volunteers will mainly include sport, creative,music and artistic activites in school club, helping with organizingvarious events for the local community, preparing a small leisuretime activities for children during school breaks, presentation oftheir cultureand language. Volunteers will also have the opportunityto run their own mini-projects.
Structure of this organization includes center of humanitarian aidand developmental cooperation in Ukraine a Moldavia and centerswith social services for people in need in city district SilesianOstrava. Social services provided in these centers are target onfamilies and children and youth. Organization also offers 2 clubs forkids and young people – Horizont and Vesnička (coexistence village). They offer many activities for children in two selected age groups.The first group of children in age 6-12 can come since 13:30 until15:30, and there are activities for them. The second group of youth inage 13-19 years old has door open in time 15:30 to 18:00 and thereare activities waiting for them.Activities such as Tutoring, Dance activities, English lessons,Cooking, Creative Workshop, Computers. In addition, there aretheme sessions once or twice a month. Theme sessions focused onprevention of social-pathological phenomena, for examplerelationships, cyberbullying, drug, smoking and alcohol abuse etc. Volunteer will be involved in the activities of these two club. He willhelp and assist in different activities and workshops and will haveopportunity to run his own mini-projects.
Volunteering activities should be a full-time service for the volunteer.Project activities (including language and other training activitiesrelating to the project) should take up minimum 30 hours and maximum38 hours per week.The volunteer is entitled have a 2 free days per month. It’s not necessaryto take these free days each month. Volunteer can collect them and usemore free days together. If volunteer will be asked towork during the weekend, he/she can take a free days after it. Taking offree days has to be consuled and agreed with coordinator in hostingorganization.Some organizations, especially schools or liesure time centres, have aspecial holilys – autumn holilys, Christmas holiday etc. Duringthese holidays are some organizations closed and workers have to taketheir free days. Also volunteers can be asked to také a free days duringthis holidays. We would like to inform you about it in advance to preventmisunderstandings. Coordinators should always inform about itvolunteers.Volunteers can also ask about it the beginning of their project to planthese free days.
21st September 2020 – 31st July 2021
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ACCOMMODATION
Volunteers in OstravaYou’ll be accommodated instudent dormitory/residence Vistain Ostrava Zábřeh, where each ofyou will have own room in theapartment, toilet and shower isshared for 2 rooms, kitchen isshared on the floor. Fridge will bein your apartment. Rooms have awi-fi connection.
Volunteers in Frýdek-Místek (near StaréMěsto)You’ll be accommodated instudent dormitory in a flat inFrýdek-Místek. Each of you willhave own room. Toilet, shower andkitchen is shared. Flat has a wi-ficonnection.
Volunteers will get from us astarting box with basic dishes –plate, cutlery, glass, pot, pan etc. –basic stuff for cooking. We alsohave an iron or clothes hanger foryou. You don’t need to bring yourown sheets.
WHAT TO BRING
comfortable clothes
medication if you need
laptop
small things from your home in caseyou’ll feel sad sometimes
alarm clock (to avoid ovesleepigJ)
motivation, good mood and manyideas
masks (may be mandatory in certainplaces and during certain periods of
the year)
FINANCES
Your pocket money will be €5 per day (this isan amount given by the program for Czechrepublic) and food allowance €4,5 You’llreceive approx €285 per month ( 7000,- Czechcrowns)
Travel costs (if you’ll exceed the given amount you have to pay the rest)AccommodationPocket money and food allowanceTravel card (for going to work and back)Contribution to miniprojectsOther organisational costs (travel expenses for on-arival and midtermmeetings, supervisions, material for project, visibility costs and other....)
Czech telephone card – according to our previous experience we don’tcover Czech telefone card or tarif. It’s up to you if you’ll use tarif you haveor if you’ll arrange the new one.
Each of you will have your own Czech bank account with creditcard where your pocket money and food allowance will be sentalways the first day in a month. At the beginning of the projectyou’ll get your money cash and after you’ll have your bankaccounts everythnig will be send there.
What is covered from the project
What is not covered
IINSURANCE
Every participant in a cross-borderactivity must be enrolled in theinsurance scheme of the EuropeanSolidarity Corps or in the hostcountry’s national health system.The insurance complements thecoverage of the mandatoryEuropean Health Insurance Cardand/or national social securityThe insurance provides onlycomplementary coverage to theEuropean Health Insurance Card orto any other insurance participantsmay have. Participants must be inpossession of their EuropeanHealth Insurance Card before thedeparture. In certain cases, whennational rules deprive volunteersfrom coverage under the EuropeanHealth Insurance Card for theduration of the activity, theinsurance company will providefull coverage (see above). Theinsurance coverage has its ownexclusions and ceilings and it ismeant to cope with urgent andnecessary care which cannot waituntil the end of the activity periodand the return home of theparticipant.Finally, participants andorganisations should take intoaccount that it is a privateinsurance scheme. As such, it ishighly recommended to contactthe insurer before incurring amedical expense, as they will beable to provide the participantwith information on whether theclaim will be reimbursed, and how.
PRE-DEPARTURE TRAININGYour sending organization should ensure pre-departure training. Thistraining is a part of Training and Evaluation cycle and should prepare youfor the project. You’ll get information about European solidarity corps,crisis managment, technical and practical information about insurance,working hours, pocket money etc.
TEAMBUILDING IN TRENDUMAll volunteers will participate in teambuilding organized by Trendum
during the first week 21.-25.9.2020
ON-ARRIVAL TRAINING AND MIDTERM MEETING
Volunteers are required to attend training courses organized by the Czech National Agency
CORONAVIRUS Becuase the situation is still changingwe are not able to tell you if it will benecessary to travel to Czech republic
with negative test (but we hope itwon't be a duty)
In order to protect you and yoursurroundings, we believe that you will
come in good condition.
We recommend you to bring somemasks with you. They can be
obligatory in some parts of Czechrepublic (regions, inside buildings) or
during some period of the year.
TRAVELLING TO CZECHREPUBLIC
To help with arranging your journey you can contactVeronika ([email protected]) or mycolleague Petr ([email protected]). Yoursending organizations should help you too. Beforebuying the tickets everything has to be approvedby Trendum (Veri or Petr).
All tickets will be refunded after your arrival and presenting theoriginal tickets (don’t forget that we’ll need also your boarding passesif you’ll travel by plain).
You must give us tickets for the wholejourney to project place and back, yourstarting and ending point must be thesame and journey must be as direct andeffective as possible.
The amounts for your travel costs are counted by distancecalculator according the rules of Euroepan solidarity corpsprogramme and They are given by the budget of our project. The amount is for both directions – for your journey to theproject plus your journey from the project.
Situation is completely different this year and we we’lldefinitely need to change the countries from which volunteerswill come to Czech republic (compare to the previous plan)For now we know that we’ll welcome volunteers from Germany,Croatia a Romania.
After confirming your participation in the project, we willinform you about the travel costs that will apply to you.
Krakow (Poland): about 3 hour to Ostrava by bus - Leoexpress https://www.le.cz Katowice (Poland): about 2 hour to
Praha (Prague, Czech Republic): by metro and train (about 5hours) to Ostrava-Svinov Wien (Austria): by local transport and train (about 4 hours)to Ostrava-SvinovOstrava airport: it is only one
Most suitable airports:
Ostrava by bus Leo express - https://www.le.cz
hour to Trendum
It's possible to travel by train or bus to Czech republic as well.
All of you shouldarrive to Ostrava.
Veri and Petr will pickyou up, take you to
the place ofaccommodation andgive you necessary
information about thefirst week etc.
CZECH REPUBLIC
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in thecentre of Europe. Its neighboring states areGermany (to the west), Poland (to the north),Slovakia (to the east) and Austria (to the south). Itwas established on 1st January 1993. Before wewere a Czechoslovakia for many many many years.Cech republic Consists of three historical territories - Bohemia, Moravia and Silesia and ourcapital is Prague. Our population is about 10,5milion.
BASIC INFORMATION
CZECH LANGUAGEThe Czech language belongs to the group of WestSlavic languages. From another perspective, Czechis an inflectional language, which means that thewords “inflect” (their endings change). Themeaning a given word has in a sentence is primarilydetermined according to this inflection.
CURRENCY The official currency of theCzech Republic is the Czechcrown (koruna), abbreviatedas Kč, with the internationalabbreviation CZK. As theofficial currency, the Czechcrown is the best and often theonly possible currency to usewhen paying.Although the Czech Republic ispart of the European Union, theeuro is not widely acceptedhere. Some stores, restaurantsand hotels accept payments ineuros but the exchange ratemay not be very good.
WEATHER
The Czech Republic lies in thetemperate climate zone, which is
characterized by mild, humidsummers with
occasional hot spells, and cold,cloudy and humid winters.
The railway network crosses the border of the Czech Republic at 30crossings, which shows that the country is well connected to theEuropean rail network. Trains run between most European cities andPrague every day, including first- and second-class carriages as wellas carriages with couchettes or beds. For example, the journey fromParis to Prague takes about 15 and a half hours, Prague - Berlin, fourhours and 40 minutes, Prague - Vienna, five and a half hours, andPrague - Warsaw, nine and a half hours.The railway network density in the Czech Republic is one of the bestin Europe. Trains are operated by Czech Railways but we also have 2private companies – Regiojet and Leo express.
TRAVELLING BY TRAIN CZECH CUISINE
Traditional Czech cuisine is notexactly a synonym for healthycooking. Although Czech eatinghabits have been shifting towardsa healthier lifestyle, traditionalrecipes are still popular - andthose tend to be high in calories,fat, and sugar. Meat is verycommon, as are various sauces,condiments, and dumplings. Thereis a similarity to traditionalGerman cooking and some mealsthat are sometimes thought of as"typically Czech", such as goulashor spaetzle, actually originated inother countries.
Important PhoneNumbers
158 - Police155 - Ambulance
150 - Fire Department112 - European
EmergencyCentral Number156 - City Police
HISTORY
The history of the Czech Lands stretches back over ten centuries – Bohemiaemerged in the late 9th century. However, people inhabited the area in theearly Stone Age. The important historical era of the Czech Lands is thereign of the Bohemianprinces and kings of the house of Premyslids in the 9th – 13th centuries. Atthe beginning of the 13th century the Czech principality is raised toa kingdom.A period of great prosperity and growth came in the 14th century with therule of the Holy Roman Emperor Charles IV (1346-78) - the 14th century isconsidered the Golden Age of Czech history and Prague was the greatestcentre of the European empire.
The Kingdom of Bohemia fell under the rule of the Habsburg Monarchybetween 1526-1918. The Holy Roman Emperor, Rudolf II, is considered to bethe most important Habsburg Emperor for the Czech lands as Praguebecame the centre of his empire.Towards the end of the First World War, on 28 October 1918, the Lands ofthe Bohemian Crown were merged with what is today the Slovak Republic toform the Czechoslovak Republic.The forty-year Communist regime, whichbegan in 1948, changed the nameof the state to the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic (in 1960).The peaceful ‘Velvet Revolution’ in 1989, which overthrew the totalitarianregime, resulted in another new name for the state, this time the Czech andSlovak Federal Republic.
On 1 January 1993, the republic split and two new states were formed – theCzech Republic and the Slovak Republic. At present, the Czech Republic isa modern and democratic country with a rich cultural and historicalheritage.
DID YOU KNOW THAT?
Did you know that famous,world-renowned personalitiesborn in what is now the CzechRepublic include composersAntonín Dvořák and BedřichSmetana, writers Karel Čapek,Franz Kafka and Milan Kundera,director Miloš Forman, religiousreformer Jan Hus, educationalistJan Ámos Komenský, operasinger Ema Destinová,psychiatrist Sigmund Freud andathletes Ivan Lendl, MartinaNavrátilová, Emil Zátopek, VěraČáslavská, hockey-playerJaromír Jagr, painters AlfonsMucha, Emil Filla, Toyen andFrantišek Kupka?
Did you know that US and co-production films that were shotin the Czech Republic includeAmadeus, Oliver Twist, Joan ofArc, Mission Impossible, CasinoRoyale and many others...
Did you know that Czechs drink themost beer per capita in The world.There are more than 70 breweries inthe Czech Republic. The bottom-fermentation method used in beerproduction, invented by the brewersofPlzeň (Pilsen) in 1842, is nowapplied across the world.
https://www.visitostrava.eu/
https://www.frydekmistek.cz/en
For more information about Czech Republic visit:http://www.czech.cz/en/Home-enhttps://www.lonelyplanet.com/czech-republichttps://www.lonelyplanet.com/czech-republichttps://redakce.czechtourism.com/home/
CONTACT PERSONVeronika Geryková - main coordinator
Did you know that "The Shop onMain Street" (directed by JánKadár and Elmar Klose) won theOscar for the best foreign-language film in 1966. The film"Closely Watched Trains"(directed by Jiri Menzel) won anOscar in 1968 and the mostrecent Czech film to win an Oscarwas "Kolja" (directed by JanSvěrák) in 1997. Twenty-year-oldMarkéta Irglová also won anOscar in 2008 for the song for thefilm "Once".
Did you know that the firstperson to categorise blood intofour types (A, B, AB, O) was theCzech neurologist Jan Jánský in1906.
Did you know that moderncontact lenses were invented byOtto Wichterle, from the town ofProstějov. He is also regarded asthe founder of macromolecularchemistry.
Did you know that the firstwoman ever to become theUnited States Secretary of State(in 1997), Madeleine Albright,was born in Prague.
Did you know that the Czechwriter Jaroslav Seifert won theNobel Prize for Literature in1984; in 1959 Jaroslav Heyrovskýwon the Nobel Prize forChemistry for discovering anddeveloping polarography.
