Yayasan Widya Sari: Volunteer Teaching Children in Bali

If I start telling you about my volunteering at the Yayasan Widya Sari in Tianyar, I really wouldn’t know where and how to start.
I experienced so many beautiful moments, met wonderful people, collected one of a kind experiences, which changed me in such a positive way. In Tianyar I actually spent one of the best times in my life.

I am overjoyed to have made this decision to spend 4 months there. I even extended my stay for one month because I just didn’t want to leave this beautiful place.
There is so much to be found in this place, so much happiness, so much joy, so much harmony and love…

During my 4 months I taught the preschool class, the A classes and all computer classes. All the children that I taught were 8 – 15 years old. At first I was incredibly nervous, no wonder, since I had never taught English before. But all my worries quickly vanished when I finally met the children. These children are so warm-hearted, happy and so affectionate. Their beautiful smiles were contagious. Teaching the classes was great fun. Every class has its own curriculum so that you know what the other volunteers previously taught and how you can continue. However, you have the freedom to create the lessons any way you like. Should you need help though, you can always ask anyone.
What fascinated me was that these students really want to learn.
They are open to anything and they are really ambitious and excited.
Be it a new grammatical topic, a new project or a new song…these kids were happy about everything, they even cheered about every new worksheet they got.:) That really sticks in my mind.
It showed me that the school's goal, the improvement of these kids future, was being fulfilled

Before and after classes you have time to play with the kids, go to the beach or simply enjoy the Balinese life. Since Tianyar is a very small and traditional village, you get to experience their incredibly, fascinating culture and religious life, be it the countless, colorful ceremonies, the Balinese dance lessons, the traditional market or the incredibly delicious Balinese food surrounded by the friendliest people I’ve ever met.

Since my great passion is dancing, I really wanted to share that with the kids. So I decided to teach them Hip Hop after class.
That was really a dream! :))
I’ve never had so much fun in my life before. The kids were thrilled with the Hip-Hop classes, which they deeply appreciated and they always made me laugh. In the beginning everyone was really shy to dance in front of the others but that was exactly the point. My goal was to reinforce their self-confidence in doing something they had never done before and to show them to believe in themselves and never give up. During my 4 months we studied different choreographies and in the end gave a stunning performance in front of the whole school. I can’t describe the amazing feeling to see these children so happy and proud. One of the most impressive moments in my life...

I owe all this to Ketut, the founder of this school. He does a really great job and it was wonderful for me to meet someone, who so loveingly invests all his time in these great children and put his whole heart into the school and the kids.
Whenever someone has problems, they can always count on him. But the whole staff/family that you live with is unique. They do a great job and really made me part of their family. I am very grateful that I can call this family my friends.
My heartfelt thanks goes to Nyoman, the cook, who served amazing and delicious meals every day. I totally fell in love with her food and I am already missing her and the food.

Friday through Sunday you have the possibility to travel and get to know the beautiful island of Bali. Bali is really dreamlike with lots of things to do like sightseeing, partying or diving…
My weekends in Tianyar as well as travelling across the island were never boring but memorable.

All in all my overall impression is, that everyone benefits from this amazing project, the children as well as the volunteers and I greatly recommend this experience to anyone.
l have all these amazing memories and friendships because of this program.
A program, which fights for a better future for many talented kids and needs all the support they can get from us to carry on with their wonderful work. I also decided to sponsor a child of this school because I know that my money really will be supporting this child’s education.

I wish everybody at the Yayasan Widya Sari all the best!
Thank you Ketut, Leony and Nyoman for everything! I miss you already!

But it’s not a goodbye, just see you later! :)

I spent 8 weeks volunteering at this program and I will never forget what an amazing time I had there. I taught two classes in English, one with the youngest children at about 8-10 years and one with 14-16 year olds. The kids are really welcoming, curious and motivated to participate in class. We, the volunteers, always helped each other to come up with ideas and hence preparing the lessons was fun too. Our freetime we used to go swimming in the sea, playing, relaxing or often just talking, which is never boring with people from so many different countries. On the weekends we usually discovered Bali together, partied and enjoyed our time.
I also like to point out, how nice, supportive and motivated the local staff was. They showed us their way of live, explained the Balines culture and we were even invited to join traditional ceremonies. The mainly local food, which was prepared for us, was very tasty and our cook was so nice to make small extra dishes for the volunteers with allergies or the vegetarians among us.
Overall I'm so happy I decided to take a break during my studies to volunteer and even more grateful that I found this program in Bali. As a volunteer you have the chance to be really useful here.

I spent two weeks volunteering at the Yayasan and I enjoyed every second of it thanks to the team of volunteers and to the local staff.
The Yayasan is a welcoming and stimulating environment for the kids as well as for the volunteers: the kids are enthusiastic about participating in the activities and eager to learn English.
What makes the program so great is the friendly and most of all homely atmosphere of the Yayasan.
Volunteers are hosted at the Yayasan, at the very heart of the village, which means being fully immersed in the Balinese culture from the wake-up call of the cock in the yard to the Balinese ceremonies! Personally, I loved going to the local market and challenge myself with the very few Balinese words I learnt while buying fruits or even a duckling!!
Overall, it’s been a meaningful experience that I would highly recommend.

I thoroughly enjoyed every single second of my stay in Tianyar teaching these beautifully talented and intelligent children, along side amazing volunteers and surrounded by the most caring, welcoming and hilarious staff. Bali as a whole feels this way, inviting and excited for people to immerse themselves in their culture. In my time we went to many local ceremonies, often watching our students perform which, makes you overwhelmingly proud, we also went to a students younger sisters 6 month ceremony which was a fantastic thing to be involved in, things like this give you the feeling you are a part of the Yayasan family. Living only feet away from the family home and all eating meals together makes everything so comfortable and you couldn't feel safer. Teaching is so enjoyable, the children are beyond hilarious and it is so refreshing to see children of such a young age so excited to learn new things! You are free to do as many fun projects and songs and dances as you like which is an amazing way to teach these lovely, lovely children. It is hard to express my crazy amount of love for this place, but volunteering here will definitely be a very happy time of your life.

I have been fortunate to volunteer at the yayasan for 7 weeks.
The Yayasan is such a great place, safe, welcoming environment for childeren to learn English. For Balinese childeren this is so important because of the impact of Tourism in their future lives.
For me personaly it was the best experience in my life. I felt so much love from all the childeren and families, they truly show their appreciation! Can't wait to go back!

I spent a total of four months here and they were some of the best months of my life.

The Yayasan Widya Sari is a foundation that offers an after school program where children from the surrounding village can attend in order to learn English. But the school offers much more than just English learning; it is a place where the children can have fun, connect with each other and with people from around the world, and grow in terms of broadening their minds and futures.

I taught two classes, a group of 17-18 year olds and a group of 13-14 year olds. While each class brought its own challenges, the rewards outweighed the challenges. I had a co-teacher to help me, and together we were always able to come up with fun and creative lesson plans. All the volunteers were constantly helping each other out, no matter what class they taught, and the freedom to plan lessons however we wished really allowed us to teach in a way that was effective and comfortable for us. A curriculum is provided, but you are given freedom as to how you wish to teach it.

The most important thing to notice about this program though is that the children really benefit from learning English. Bali relies so heavily on tourism that learning English gives these students a leg up against their peers, especially those who come from such a rural village as this one. It really does affect the students' futures and allows them a chance at a better one.

Time before and after classes consisted of planning lessons, relaxing around the school, wandering around the village or the beach, connecting with the school's staff and the volunteers, and interacting with the children. Because the school is in the middle of the village, you are constantly surrounded by locals, by the children and their families, and it allows you to connect with them on a more personal level. By the time I left, I had grown so close with not only the students I taught, but all the children at the school. The students at the Yayasan are some of the most amazing group of children I've ever met.

This school is unique because you don't go to only teach English; when you teach here, you are immersing yourself completely in the culture. During my time here I was able to attend handfuls of Balinese ceremonies, learn how to Balinese dance, eat traditional Balinese food, shop at the markets, and overall become integrated into the life. The Balinese have such a rich and beautiful culture and I was really exposed to this; that made my experience even more meaningful.

The staff of the school are wonderful people and dedicated to the volunteers in every way. They treat everyone like family and always work together with the volunteers in order to support their ideas. For example, during my time there, the other volunteers and I were able to plan field trips for the students, a huge soccer tournament, our very own Holi Powser Festival, beach cleanups, and other things.

On the three day weekends you have the freedom to travel all over the wonderful island of Bali, which I would suggest doing as well. Bali has plenty of incredible places to visit and spend your time, so you will never be bored if you're willing to travel. I spent an even amount of time traveling and spending time at the school on the weekends and I was never bored.

The accommodations are great for the location of the school: comfortable beds, working showers, enough space for all my things. The meals are a definite highlight of the school; the cook is spectacular.

Overall, my time spent here whizzed by and if I could have stayed longer, I would have. I saw up to 16 volunteers come and go during my time there and everyone I worked with had a great experience.

I cannot express how much my volunteering time at Yayasan Widya Sari has impacted on me. I have made life long friends, lived within a fascinating culture and the children are nothing short of amazing.

The founder of the program, Ketut, is the real thing!!! He cares greatly for the children and their future and always has time for us volunteers, he and his family are genuine hosts, (Ketut's sister is a great cook).

I feel confident telling anyone who is interested in giving their time to the education of underprivileged children to volunteer with Yayasan Widya Sari as the program is run entirely by Balinese, with NO profits made by any third party. Volunteer's fees go into the employment of local staff, such as the beautiful Leony (Volunteer Co-ordinator) and into the development and sustainability of such a powerful program. Children who before had no access to education now have FREE daily classes.

Volunteering in Bali has been an amazing experience, I have learnt SO much about myself and what I am also able to achieve. The children are so motivated to learn that teaching them was nothing but pure fun.

There is no doubt that I will return to volunteer again with all the beautiful people at Yayasan Widya Sari in Bali, Indonesia.

Thank you and see you soon again.

l had an amazing time volunteering at a local non-profit organisation.
The local staff were very helpful: Ketut, Made, Leonie & Nyoman and their extended families.
The children were so keen to learn which made my English teaching so enjoyable and easy.
l really felt that l was making a real different to the children, but at end l was the one that changed for the better.
We joined in a couple of Balinese village ceremonies, which open my eyes to their special cultural.
Our daily meals prepared where so nice.
l wanted to volunteer directly with the non-profit organisation knowing that 100% of my costs/donations would go directly to the school and local Balinese community.