Drachenschule 
Odenwald e.V.

Birkenweg 31
69483 Wald-Michelbach

Anfahrt (Google Maps)

Sekretariat:
(Mo. - Fr. 8 -12 Uhr)
Tel:, 06207 92 48 51
Fax: 06207 94 98 72
Mail

Impressum
Datenschutz

 

Volunteering

Volunteer at our free alternative school in beautiful "Odenwald"
The volunteering opportunity
 Who we are
 What we have in store for you
 Where we are located
 Where you will stay
How to connect
What our volunteers say about their experience at Drachenschule
The volunteering opportunity – what/who we are looking for and what we have on offer

Are you passionate about supporting children in finding answers to their many curious questions about science, computers, nature and the world in general or do you love engaging in sports and outdoor activities/education?

Do you have buzzing energy, are you on par with children, can you spontaneously connect with young explorers and do you yourself love exploring and learning new things?

And do you have three or more weeks to spare?

Then you could be THE volunteer to join us at the school amidst the “Odenwald” geological nature park, in Germany!

You being a native English speaker or having a very good mastery of English would be very appreciated!

You will be free to choose the activities you want to engage in at our school according to your interests.

The range of activities varies greatly and what you will be doing is up to your creativity and the children's wish to interact with you. You don't have to be an expert in any of the fields. Qualities we are looking for in volunteers are enthusiasm, open-mindedness and a willingness to share fun and good times. You will be required to be flexible and empathic, to feel yourself and others and bring that together in play and joint activities.

Volunteering activities can be any of the following:

  • peaceful outdoor and indoor play with children aged 6 to 17
  • chatting away in English, be around our kids and support them in their endeavours to speak and understand English
  • assisting tuition with our English or Spanish groups
  • introduce your mother tongue to curious children using interactive games and play
  • assisting our mentors in creating awareness of interculturality and diversity in the world
  • talking about your experiences travelling, sharing photos and insights
  • reading to our children
  • playing games like chess, Go, carrom, board games, play with hand puppets and any games you loved as a child
  • assisting in preparing theatre play and forum theatre sequences
  • engaging in sport activities like basketball, soccer, fitness training, acrobatics, martial arts
  • programming and doing some IT 'stuff' with the kids
  • visiting parks, museums and other venues together with our kids and mentors
  • supporting children in exploring any academic interest they want to dig into
  • doing scientific and fun experiments in the fields of biology and chemistry
  • create workshops together with the kids and enjoy "science communication"
  • doing music, dance and offer yoga
  • kick-off art projects and use the Arno Stern atelier
  • do some small-scale gardening, grow herbs and veggies with the kids
  • and lots more - there is no limit to what can be created and discovered mutually beneficial when the right people come together :-)
Who we are

We are a unique alternative, democratic school situated within the beautiful nature park of the Odenwald, Germany. The school provides children with the opportunity to decide about their own learning and progress, they pursue their own interests, and are free to decide whether they want to spend time in- or outdoors. We think that free play is a crucial part in the development of children - therefore the freedom to play is explicitly included in our idea for the school that also incorporates elements of "non-violent communication" and the "non-directive" approach by Rebeca Wild. Every day is unique and dynamic at our school that is run on par with the children, fuelled by their interests and diverse daily activities.

What we have in store for you

We offer fun times at and around our free alternative ‘Dragonschool’, free meals and free accommodation along with open minds to hang out with.

You get the opportunity to immerse yourself in a joyful German environment with a happy bunch of 55 kids (aged 6 to 17) and our 9 mentors, and there is no limit as to what you can learn and discover, including the German language, culture and how you yourself will feel in a unique environment like ours that aims at having a healthy balance between the pursuit of individual interests and feeling related to a lively community. There will be staff speaking English, French, Spanish or Japanese to facilitate your stay if needed. You will be having a mentor at your side while in our school who can guide and support you at all times.

Where we are located

Located in rural Wald-Michelbach within a beautiful nature setting, opportunities for hiking/biking are plentiful. The cultural hubs and reknowned cities of Heidelberg and Mannheim are only 45 and 30 min. away respectively.

Find us in Google Maps

Where you will stay

We offer free accommodation with private bedroom and shared facilities like kitchen and bathroom. Our hosts are happy to welcome you, cook and hang out together in the evenings if that's what you enjoy too.
Two meals will be provided at our school and will be available between 8:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m. Evening meals will be shared with the host you stay with whenever possible, could be self-catered on some days as well (we have a pool of families who offer accommodation so we will try finding a good match according to your needs.)

How to connect

Send us an email to Diese E-Mail-Adresse ist vor Spambots geschützt! Zur Anzeige muss JavaScript eingeschaltet sein! at any time and tell us a little bit about you, your background and your motivation to be a volunteer at our school. What would you like to learn and experience and what do you have to offer that might be of benefit to us?

We will then have a skype session to help both of us decide. During that session you can throw all your questions at us and we can figure out together whether the volunteering opportunity is the right thing for you.

Interested? Questions? We would love to hear from you!

We are also registered as a host on www.workaway.info

Have a look at our volunteering agreement here.

What our volunteers say about their experience at Drachenschule

Dominik (23) - EU-citizen:

"Initially, I planned to volunteer three weeks at Drachenschule, however, such as many other volunteers I decided pretty quickly to extend my stay. At the school you pretty much get to shape your daily activities yourself so both you and the children have a genuine interest in all projects that are taking place. I learned so much from the school and was impressed by the independency the children already have at a young age. This made me think about how much of the time I spent in (regular) school was wasted. As to the hosts you are staying at one of the families and everybody is really committed to making you feel at home. Also, having seen a lot of places in Germany I can honestly say that Odenwald is the most beautiful area. Thank you to everyone for making my time as a volunteer at Drachenschule one of the most valuable experiences I ever made!"

 

Rahma (22) - from Indonesia

"I can't describe how glad I was to spend my two weeks volunteering at this school. That was my first time volunteering in such a free school system and it was totally worth it. I was mesmerized by the independency of the children in choosing what subjects to learn and how they decided to take themselves into something that they like. Besides, I could also practice my German skills with the kids in simple conversations. Thank you to everyone for this unforgettable experience ever in my life."

 

Eve (25) from USA

"This is a very welcoming community in an interesting part of the country. The school is thoughtful about integrating volunteers, and has some lovely daily rituals that make it possible to meet lots of people in a short amount of time. I met some awesome, open young people and had a great homestay for my 5 weeks. Thank you, Dragons!"

 

Yaël (18) from France

"Hi everybody :) I went to the Drachenschule twice: the first time was so great and so short (4 weeks), that I decided to come back a few months later! And the second time was at least as great as the first one! I had so much to learn from the children and adults there (and I learnt so much :-D), their ideas, their personalities, their organisation... So I would advise everyone who would like to see something else and who would want to experience something great for the entire life to go to the Drachenschule!
In my two times there, I lived with three different host families, and they all were amazing, very kind and nice people! I haven't been there in summer, but I can say that the school under snow is wonderful :) Just don't fear the cold! "
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