Volunteer Restoration Projects in Thailand

Travel to Teach volunteer restoration projects are a mostly school holiday activity (February-May and October.) Based in the rural parts of Thailand we work in the small communities that don’t have enough funding to maintain or repair their school grounds therefore the money you bring to the project has a direct impact on the local community.

The projects are often designed according the to the skills of the volunteers so if you already have experience or are a craftmen, electrician etc these projects are an excellent opportunity to put some of your skills to good use or gain some useful experience.

Volunteers who have no previous experience need not worry as there are plenty of simple tasks to do such as cleaning, gardening and painting. For bigger tasks we employ local masons, carpenters, electricians and craftsmen.

The working schedule is varied depending on external factors such as the public holidays and the weather however a typical day will start at 9.30 and end at 3 with an hour for lunch allowing time for volunteers to teach evening classes if they wish.

We have tried to run at least 2 restoration camps a year in the Nongkhai area. In 2007 these included the Jomennee Primary School and Ban Paw Primary School. Previous projects included the Scorpion School outside of Nongkhai and 2 holiday camps in the Mee Chai community near to Nongkhai. The first camp was spent clearing the grounds, mending the toilet block, painting the community hall and playground equipment, fixing the water filtering unit, rewiring the school and repairing the sports field. Meaning that these facilites can now be used not only by the students but also the community. The second vacation concentrated on the school, two derelict classrooms were renovated and fitted out with brand new art and music equipment.

Volunteering during this time actually serves a dual purpose as we invite many university and college students to assist in the restoration project providing them the much needed opportunity to practise their English skills. At Travel to Teach we believe that students learn through the pracitcal application of skills and have found that the restoration projects provide the perfect setting this.

Photo Gallery: Images from the Ban Paw Library Restoration Camp