Which Spanish Language Program Abroad?

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  • Summer Camp in Spanish Speaking Country?

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    Aug 23, 2023

    We are a bilingual (Spanish/English) family and my daughter is in kindergarten at Sylvia Mendez. I'm hoping to go somewhere Spanish speaking next summer for 3 or 4 weeks and enroll my daughter in a local summer camp. I'm quite flexible about where we go, but the few things I've easily found online (Google searching) seem oriented primarily to foreigners and my hope is to have my daughter experience more immersion in local community/culture. Wondering if anyone else has done something similar in the past few years, or can point me to resources to explore some possibilities. Thanks in advance!

    Aug 23, 2023

    I have similar interests and have previously looked into versions of this for various languages at various stages. Anyway, haven't been myself or my kids to this, but you might want to check out the Y of Puerto Rico! Here's the form for 2023, very familiar looking for those of us who have done Y programming here! LOL. https://www.ymcasanjuan.org/_files/ugd/d971ed_897071506457454ebbd0dd95e…

    Aug 25, 2023

    If you are considering Spain, another person on this forum shared a spreadsheet they compiled of options. They found a lot of info on Yumping.com. We went to Spain this June and found that no camps were available, and in some places things like amusement parks weren't open during the week yet. So keep that in mind when planning.

    Aug 30, 2023

    Hi! We've done it twice - once in Sayulita, Mexico and once this past summer in San Sebastian, Spain.  I know that Costa Rica also has many options.  Happy to provide more info you ping me. 

    Aug 30, 2023

    Hi! 

    We went to Puerto Vallarta this past summer. It was great! I wrote up some info about it on a website I created for bilingual resource sharing. If you have more questions, feel free to reach out! 

    https://sites.google.com/view/bayareabilinguals/summer-camp-abroad

    Sep 18, 2023

  • Spanish Summer Abroad -short program recommendations

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    Jan 17, 2023

    My 10th grader is interested in pausing/ending her formal Spanish learning by immersing in a short summer program abroad. She’s thinking 2 weeks (still worthwhile or too short?)  Appreciate any recommendations, thoughts & more! Costa Rica Youth Exchange? Others? (Cost is not a giant factor, important that it is well run.)   Mucho Gracias!

    Jan 17, 2023

    I heartily endorse the concept and myself did a 5 week program in Spain between my sophomore & junior years of high school. (Unfortunately the organization no longer exists.) I guess the question is, why bother if this is the end of her formal Spanish? It really pays off in the next year's studies. But anyway, it's a great thing to do; although 2 weeks might not be enough to move the needle.

    Jan 21, 2023

    My daughter did Amigos de las Americas which is a fantastic, very well-run program. They’ve changed post-pandemic but usually their projects are longer that 2 weeks. If you’re thinking this summer I don’t know if you can still sign up. If it’s just for language there are a million immersion language schools that do home stays. I don’t have any specific recommendations since it’s been >20 years since I did it. Your kid will get way more out of it with a longer stay, 2 weeks is really short. 

    Jan 23, 2023

    Amigos de las americas is a fabulous summer program. I did it years ago and it was a life changing experience. Well run and we’ll known organization. Highly recommended.

    Jan 23, 2023

  • Elementary school level summer camps in Costa Rica

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    Jan 11, 2023

    Hello! I am considering a three-week stay in Costa Rica this summer and would like to enroll my two children (ages 5 and 7) in summer camp for two of the weeks while I work remotely. Any insights or tips welcome! Specifically, I am seeking perspectives from any family who has done the elementary program at the Institute for Spanish Language Studies.

    Jan 11, 2023

    I would recommend the Cloud Forest School in Monteverde (also called Creativa).  My daughter attended the summer camp  the summer between 1st and 2nd grade and loved it so much we moved there the following year so that she could attend.  They also will help you find housing living with a family from the school (we were lucky enough to be placed with Arleny!).  https://cloudforestschool.org/

    Jan 18, 2023

  • Summer camp in Spain (8-11 year-olds)?

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    Dec 22, 2022

    Our family of 4 is looking to spend a month in Spain over the summer. Both parents will be working 4-5 days a week and so we're looking for ~3 weeks of camp with our two kids (entering 3rd and 6th grade). We parents don't speak Spanish, but our children do (Spanish immersion school). So, for the camp, we're seeking a program with a team that can communicate with our language-skill-lacking selves but still give our kids a meaningful immersion experience. We're happy for it to be a basic summer camp with sports, art, outdoors, activities and such (not looking for something academic), with Spanish-speaking camp staff and ideally most other kids speaking Spanish. We've seen some options online, such as Enforex, but it's hard to find reviews or someone who's had direct experience. 

    I'd really appreciate any advice or hearing the experience of another family who may have done this with their kids and had a good (or bad) experience! Thank you!  

    Dec 22, 2022

    Your situation sounds similar to mine last summer. I did lots of research online too because I (the non-Spanish speaker of the house) was the only one with time to browse around. I still have that spreadsheet and am happy to share it with you. I also came across Enforex and another site called yumping.com. The things I can share during my research phase - many municipalities run their own camps (called campamentos) and are low-cost, though you'd have to be able to navigate the city website (try search words having to do with youth and education) to see what eligibility is, as some require you to be a resident. Also, much of the summer camp information comes out right around/after Easter. This is especially the case with American and international schools that run their own summer camps (not sure if it would be in Spanish though).

    Now, what ENDED up happening, true to the spontaneity of my Latin half, is that we did not sign up for anything I had on my spreadsheet. Instead, we arrived in Madrid in June, where my husband asked his brother for the local newspaper, and he just ended up finding an advertised camp and calling the number, arranging to bring in our kid the next day. I don't know if you have any relatives or friends who can help you out that way, but this is ultimately what happened in our case. Good luck!

    Jan 25, 2023