"IT'S COOL TO BE SMART!"
Belize Educational Volunteer Program
“It’s Cool to be Smart!" was born from the passion to educate and inspire the minds of our future. Having resources, teaching kids how to be resourceful and to apply what they’ve learnt, is paramount to their future success. Being a mother of two boys, who have very different learning styles - book worm vs. kinesthetic learner - as well as numerous nieces and nephews, helps me to realize the importance of understanding how each individual child learns and use this to nurture their love of learning! It is very important to develop a culture where children are allowed to be empowered by knowledge and know that “It is Cool to be smart!”
It's Rewarding To Give the Gift of Education to Children. Combining It with Vacation - is just a bonus!
HOW YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE
Be sure to pack school supplies if you have extra luggage space while packing for vacation! Not sure what is needed? Recommend lists of supplies are below. Our program is geared for preschoolers to high school students with the main focus on preschoolers and elementary kids. We’ve partnered with Maskall Preschool, Zion Park Elementary School and King’s College (High School) in the neighboring villages of Maskall and Santana on the Old Northern Highway. Help us to Make A Difference!

Inspire & Empower
Let us give all our children bright futures! When children succeed we succeed! Belize succeeds! Let's keep working to give every child, regardless of gender or ethnicity, the chance to realize their dreams and potentials through education! If you are not visiting Belize Boutique Resort & Spa and want to make a positive educational difference, we encourage you to check with your hotel or the principal of the public school in the area you will visit. Your assistance to make a positive change will be greatly appreciated and a welcomed inspiration.

It is extremely important to develop a culture where children are allowed to be empowered by knowledge and know that “It is Cool to be Smart!”

It is our goal to plant a seed that will produce future professionals and humanitarians.
HONOR LIBRARY
“It’s Cool to be Smart” has inspired the “Honor Library” - a library of physical books & necessary school textbooks that will be available to kids at home.
This makes it easy to do school work or simply quench the curiosity. Having the resources to succeed is important. Using and applying it is vital. We’ve arranged the library by interest to compliment the way kids talk.
There’s plenty of tactile activities for kinesthetic learners. We look forward to a digital library as we embrace the future of learning. Future goals for the library includes addressing topics directly affecting children.
It is our goal to plant a seed that will produce future professionals and humanitarians. A few immediate programs that embrace this goal is “I AM!”, “Coach” And “Accelerators”.

“I AM!”
Kids that have a vision or a passion for the future are most likely to work towards making their goals a reality.“I AM” captures the goals of our kids and plant the seed for them to flourish. Kids are asked who they’d like to be in the future. They then need to research what their future self will do in their chosen field and put a presentation together for a Career Day at an elementary school. They must dress and be the person in their chosen field eg. I am a scientist, I am a doctor, I am a teacher… lawyer, police wo/man, fire fighter… Each presenTation starts with their name and age as their future self - the age being the ice breaker.

“COACH” & “ACCELERATORS”
“COACH” and “Accelerators” are programs designed for students that excel in a subject to be recognized and paired with weaker performing students to help them gain confidence and excel. Each “COACH” and “Accelerators” gets a badge of recognition in his or her subject/s. This also helps teachers to utilize their performing students and equip “coaches” with the ability to help with lesser performing students, enhancing the educating performance of the school. The program is geared to give children a hobby and purpose so they remain engaged in school and excel. Subject such as Sport and Creative Arts are all part of the program.
Experiences that enriches the lives of the person receiving, as well as the lives of the persons giving.


RECCOMMENDED SUPPLIES
backpacks, pencil cases, cool pens and pencils, erasers, rulers, pencil sharpeners, geometry sets, calculators, scissors crayons, markers, glue, glue gun, glue sticks, crafts, motivational stickers, workbooks, educational flash cards (opposites, alphabets, animals, shapes, colors, addition, subtraction) workbooks, books (Dr. Seuss, Berenstain Bears, animals, DK children book, school zone workbooks, scholastic) educational children dvd and educational games
Kinesthetic learners – whiteboard, magnets, building block or puzzles, clay, play dough, dice games, tactile educational games etc…
Website links to educational content & product are greatly appreciated.
We encourage you to be a part of the process with us and Welcome Your Recommendations!
STRIKING THE RIGHT BALANCE
We know it’s super important for kids to be hip & cool! We embrace education with this in mind in order to engage the interests of the next cool, creative generation.
Programs are done year long with the schools we’ve partnered with, as well as the Maskall Library and other educational school or church groups. Summer programs and camps include yoga, health + nutrition, educational field trips to local museum and nearby Altun Ha Maya Ruin, creative projects and expressive arts.
THANK YOU!
We personally thank all our guests who have brought educational supplies, recommended educational sites, visited on volunteer vacations and supported our program in any way.
Thank you for your support and generosity. Every gift makes a difference. Your Generous Gifts and Commitment are an inspiration to us all.
Knowing you can actually make a positive difference in the lives of children is very rewarding, especially while doing it on vacation and having the trip of a lifetime!
If you would like to volunteer for the Summer Camp, Programs or simply visit the school, contact Melanie at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. today.
It's Rewarding to Give the Gift of Education to Children! Combining it with Vacation - is just a bonus!
"It's not just a vacation. It's an Experience!"