Vranov nad Topou is located in the northwest part of Eastern Slovakia Lowland in the upper part of the region called Zemplin between the rivers of Topa and Ondava near Poland and Ukraine borders. The town is situated near the second biggest town in Slovakia Košice and town Prešov. The town is a starting point for trips to the Veka Domaša water reservoir.
In the town of Vranov nad Topou live 26 thousand inhabitans. There live Slovak, Czech, Roma, Rusyns, Ukrainian people. The religions represent mainly Roman Catholics, Greek Catholics, Lutherans.
The town is an economic centre of the area. A famous person from Vranov is Jan Figel, a politician, the European Commissioner of Education and Culture.
Children´s Home is situated 100 meters from the centre of Vranov nad Topou. It is not far for children and youth from Childrenœ Home to the schools, cultural and educational centres, cinemas, sport centres, banks or hospital etc. Our Children´s Home consists of one main building and 2 other houses. One is situated near the main building and the other one in the town of Humenne near Vranov nad Top¾ou /25 km/.
In town Vranov nad Top¾ou we have primary schools, a lot of secondary schools, possibilities to spend free time for example: ice rink, swimming pool, cultural centres, cinemas, internet cafés etc. You can find more information on www.vranov.sk . The town organizes a lot of cultural and sports events during the year.

Please explain:
" what you can offer to volunteers in terms of Service and learning opportunities,
" what will be the role of EVS volunteers in the Host Organisation,
" the activities in which the volunteers could be involved and the activities the volunteers could create in your organisation. Please give examples of typical activities for the volunteers.
The main aim of this project is possibility for young people from Europe to know other country, culture, meals, language and manners. The volunteer will learn some new facts about the life of children who do not have parents, will gain new skills in child care in this organisation. Volunteer will make new friends. Volunteer can utilise their own ideas on EVS project. In our project volunteer will lead children and youth in the leisure activities /such as painting, dancing, sports actvities, singing, playing games/ with help of the employees of Children´s Home . The children can talk, play games, do activities together with the volunteer, which will offer them and enable them to receive new ideas from the children activities.
Aims of the project
1. We would like to offer a chance for volunteers - young people from Europe, to get to know our country Slovakia, nature, countryside, culture and care of children and youth people.
2. To give a chance for children and young people from the Children´s Home to get to know other countries and cultures via volunteers and their activities in our organisation.
Daily programme:
MONDAY - FRIDAY
06,30 - 07,00 - getting up
07,00 - 07,30 - breakfast in families /help with breakfast/
07,30 - 08,30 - departure to schools / they are 15 minutes by walk from the home/.
Children are accompanied during the walk, this walk must be safe and the volunteer
will go with the other workers together to school and take care of younger children
08,30 - 10,30 - free time
10,30 - 11,30 - language course in the Slovak language
1st-3rd month - 3 times a week
4th-6th month - twice a week
7th-12th month - once a week

Time for learning new ideas, gaining various experience, skills,……..
In case the volunteer does not take the Slovak language course and he/she will visit Centre of Leisure Time in Vranov nad Top¾ou from 10,30 till 11,30 where they can receive new skills how to prepare leisure time activities for children and youth or go and visit similar institutions for inspiration and receiving basic practical experience from painting and go and see dancing groups for learning the dances /typical Slovak folk, modern, etc./ and she/he can have a possibility to work with a PC /to make posters, preparation for game activities for afternoon/, the Internet and phone /volunteer can use it for communication with the sending organisation, with friends and for finding ideas for work/, too at home
12,00 - 13,00 help with cooking lunch with an educator
13,00 - 14,00 accompanying children from schools to the Children´s Home by walk together with worker
14,00 - 16,00 3 times a week a leisure time - activities with children for example singing, playing, dancing, sports activities, each week in a different group dependence of age /every week the volunteer will have to change the group/family/ of children/
twice a week - art, painting, creative activities for children - 1 x with younger and 1x with older children
16,00 - 18,00 leisure time
18,00 - 18,30 dinner in families /help the educator with preparation/
18,30 - 20,00 3x a week sports and games /handball, basketball, volleyball, table tennis, etc./ for underage mothers aimed at relaxing exercises such as dancing, aerobics, yoga, dancing group
20,00 leisure time
SATURDAY : FREE TIME
SUNDAY: FREE TIME
The volunteer will work 5 days a week, together it is 32.5 working hours a week.

The Children´s Home takes part in grants in which we organize theme activities and activities for children with health and educational problems.

Our volunteer is to arrange the organisation of free time activities for the children and youth, and thus is a helping hand to the educators in this field. At the same time, he/she is to bring in their own ideas, activities, their own cultural and national dimension.


PERCENTAGE DIVISION OF ACTIVITIES
5% - using PC
5% - access to the Internet and telephone
15% - language course
10% - volunteer´s own creativity, initiatives, ideas,
10% - accompanying children from schools
10% - art groups
10% - leisure time activities
10% - relaxing groups
10% - gaining art skills
10% - supporting the volunteer and meeting with the mentor
5% - meetings with the manager and workers in Children´s Home

Note:
After three months we enlarge access to the Internet and telephone and reduce the course in the Slovak language.
Volunteers will regularly take part in the educators´ working meetings.

Holidays during EVS: The volunteer will have 20 days of holiday during 1 year of EVS. He/she can spend this in Children´s Home or can travel and see new towns, areas, countries, etc.

Accommodation:
Volunteer will live in a youth hostel.
There is a single flat - 1 room, a kitchen, a bathroom, a toilet, a corridor and a separate entrance
A single room - a day-bed, a wall system furniture, a TV set, a radio, a small kitchen unit, a cooker, a fridge, a microwave oven, kitchen utensils, a bath, a washbasin, a laundress, a corridor.
Food:
We offer three types: 1. all day board can be served in dining room at the families
2. separately in their own kitchen
3. combination
Support:
Volunteer will have full support from all the workers of our organisation.
We offer a responsible person for volunteers who will be at their disposal mainly in the first months. It will include providing information about the town, seeing a doctor and going to offices. At the beginning he/she will stay with volunteers during weekends until they make some new friends. This person will be a contact person between the home´s management and volunteers. If any problems arise, he/she will help to solve them.

EXPERT ASSISTANCE:
In case of an interest we are able to provide a graphic artist who will help to gain or to enlarge knowledge and skills in art education.
If volunteers show an interest to learn to dance in order to help with a dance group, we could arrange visits in dancing groups in the region where they can gain knowledge and skills and learn new types of dances.
All activities of volunteers will be carried out in the presence of educators or responsible persons.

Opportunity:
- use possibility to cooperate with russian and roma´s minority, he/she will have oportunity to
learn how to be tolerant with different etnic group
- work with children and youth
- pick up skills in this leisure time activities
- intercultural learning - contact with public
- to prepare his/her own little project
- to know about traditional Slovak food and folklore, history