There are three children. In January 2016, the oldest boy will be 17 and in Y12, his sister will be 14 and in Y10, and their younger brother will be 12 and in Y8. The children currently attend their local state school where they are doing well. The school involved is happy to work with the family and tutors, keeping the children on their registers, as long as they maintain their academic progress and re-integrate smoothly into the school on their return for the summer term.

All three children are curious and engaging with a wide range of interests and talents. Between them they play several instruments including piano, guitar, drums, and saxophone. The whole family leads a sporty and physically active lifestyle, and they are keen surfers.

The children enjoy working with teachers that deserve respect because they are inspirational, knowledgeable and interesting, but people who are also organised, calm, patient, well prepared and who have a sense of humour. Tutors that can think ‘outside the box’ and vary their teaching methods to keep lessons interesting would suit well.

The oldest child excelled in his GCSE exams and would like to maintain that level of achievement. He enjoys most subjects, particularly Chemistry. He is passionate about food and cooking in addition to sport and music. He is a diligent and focused learner who has requested organised timetabling.

His sister is a visual learner, arty and fun. She is quiet at school but gregarious at home. She has auditory processing issues and notably slower comprehension. Adjustments to teaching styles have, so far, provided sufficient compensation to keep her progressing yet streaming lower in academic subjects, as a contrast to her coursework based practical subjects such as Photography and Art, where she marks highly. She struggles in school with the larger class sizes and limited support. She has ability, but needs to find more self-belief, confidence and a different way of studying – ways that give her lifelong strategies (possibly different to the mainstream school approach) so that she can more easily absorb and digest the information.

The tutoring attention should give her an extra boost. She has to work twice as hard to process the information being given to her, hence she benefits from breaks to absorb the learning and requires attention to keep her focused and fully supported. In her own time, she particularly enjoys singing.

Their younger brother enjoys most subjects. He is perpetually positive and enthusiastic with a natural inquisitiveness to learn. He enjoys many sports, music and being active. He is keen to achieve and progress, but needs to be kept focused. He loves surfing, skateboarding and playing rugby.

The Tutor is one of two Tutors in this role, one of who is returning from last year. The second Tutor will work alongside his or her colleague, with all three children five days a week on average, typically Monday-Friday. The purpose of the role is to maintain their progress relative to their peers while the family are in Costa Rica. The children’s school has given the family consent for their work abroad and will provide the Tutors with accurate descriptions and specifications of the material to be covered by each of their respective subject teachers and will liaise accordingly.

The youngest child is in his second year at secondary school and still has a full and varied timetable including French and Spanish alongside the core subjects. His sister is in her first year of her two-year GCSE qualifications. It is therefore imperative that the Tutors can cover a wide range of subjects. Alongside the core subjects of Maths, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, English, IT and RE, she has selected Music, Photography, Art, Fashion & Textiles for GCSE.

The oldest child has just gained 14 A* and A grades at GCSE level and has now started his A2 lessons. For his A levels, he has selected Chemistry, Geography, Business, Core Maths Statistics, and an EPQ with the subject matter as yet undecided. This means that, between them, the Tutors will need to be well versed with appropriate learning targets across all the required key stages and subjects from the school curricula.

The returning Tutor can teach the GCSE Maths, Physics, Chemistry, Biology, and IT, as well as the A level Chemistry, Geography and Statistics. She can also teach Spanish to GCSE, but the Tutor being sought for this role must therefore at least be able to teach GCSE French, English, RE, Music, Photography, Fashion & Textiles, and Art, as well as A level Business.

The Tutor may need to get some of their resources from the local environment for subjects such as Science and Geography. He or she will need to have the personal credibility and professionalism to establish a good working relationship with the teachers at home. It is essential that the tutor and schoolteachers share progress, disseminate information (such as changes to programmes of study) and address any questions that arise, for each of the children.

A private schoolroom with two classrooms (one open air) is provided.

The successful candidate for this role will need to be upbeat, inspirational and have plenty of energy. Ideally they will be highly competent with Spanish, enjoy beach life and water sports, play musical instruments or sing, be creative and imaginative. Surfing, yoga, Pilates, horse riding, mountain biking, running etc. are all available. Teaching in the inspirational environment of the largely undeveloped Pacific coast of Costa Rica offers able teachers unparalleled opportunities to illuminate the standard curriculum and enhance the learning experience in ways that should make this experience for all three children something special that they reflect on fondly and look forward to with excitement. Although the children’s school largely governs the content of the curriculum, the Tutor should use the local environment as a resource wherever possible.

The Tutor will need to be well organised, flexible and adaptable. Although the family will try to maintain a routine, there may be occasions when the surf is particularly good one morning, or a volcano is worth a visit, and the decision is made to adjust plans at short notice. It is important to roll with these occasional interruptions, even to join in with the family, and certainly not to complain. Equally important is the need to remember that the role is based in a fairly remote location which, while indescribably beautiful, can make technology unreliable. There will be times when the printer breaks, or there’s a power cut, or the Internet goes down… The Tutor needs to be able to take these events in their stride and make allowance for them rather than getting frustrated.

Clearly, this role requires a resourceful, intelligent and knowledgeable educator who is sensitive to the unusual circumstances of the position, relaxed and easy-going with a sunny disposition on the one hand while firm, encouraging and directed on the other. It is also important that the Tutor remembers that although the working environment is relaxed compared to formal schooling in England, it is essential to remain professional at all times and respectful of the family’s privacy.

The Tutor should expect to work an average of about 30 hours a week, 5 days a week. Preparation time is in addition to this. Both Tutors will be entitled to a minimum of 2 weeks paid vacation per 4-month assignment, taken at times convenient to the Client, as per the Terms. The Tutors should not expect to be able to have time off at the same time. In the past these periods of paid vacation have been either side of the tutoring time and it is likely that this pattern will continue.

The Client will provide separate, furnished accommodation with Internet for the Tutors, nearby the family home and schoolroom. This accommodation is suitable for a man or woman for either role. The Client will be responsible for all bills on this property with the exception of any private phone calls.

The Tutors are responsible for their own meals.

The Client will be responsible only for the first outward and final return journey (or equivalent cost) from London for each 3-month assignment, and for internal travel in Costa Rica as required for their work.

For Tutor-related purposes a car will be made available to the Tutors. The rest of the time bicycles are the best form of personal transport, and these will be provided for the Tutors. For longer journeys to nearby cities for example, there is a reliable bus service, taxis, or a short plane flight.

It is essential that the Tutor is a non-smoker, fit and physically active, leads a healthy lifestyle, and in so doing sets a good example.

The family is based in a rural and largely undeveloped part of Costa Rica. Although it is a long journey by road to the nearest conurbation, it is just 40 minutes drive to the local airport and an inexpensive 25-minute flight to San José.

The Tutor will be responsible for arranging and financing their own health, possessions, and travel insurance.

It will not normally be appropriate for the Tutor to have visitors during this 3-month assignment.