Inspiration can be such a tricky concept; one child’s muse can be another’s ennui. Because it’s about so much more than finding a place to call home or even settling on one of the best international schools in Costa Rica: Helping your child find her inspiration, explore her interests, and pursue her dreams is a path every parent forges over the seemingly too few 18 formative years.
It can be a little easier in Costa Rica, though. Here are four ways that nature, school, and everyday life can inspire your child to live well, live fully, and embrace every opportunity:
The Wildlife. Oh, The Wildlife!
If we lived in Antarctica, maybe we’d be blasé about penguins and overjoyed to see squirrels. Maybe…
But, here’s the thing: Whether you’ve been in Costa Rica for a day or a decade, you don’t get tired of seeing monkeys in the backyard. You never stop grabbing for your camera when an iguana waddle-runs over the grass. You are in awe, every time a baby sea turtle makes its way to the sea. And you always, always look up when you hear scarlet macaws squawk.
There’s just something about Costa Rican wildlife! And so, while you will teach your child everything you can, and while you’ll send him to one of the best international schools in Costa Rica, you’ll soon find that some of the most inspiring moments of his life reside in his own backyard.
Who knows? He may grow up to become a marine biologist or a wildlife conservationist. Or he may just learn to love and respect wildlife (even the creepy-crawly and the slithery kinds), on a deeper level. One thing is for sure, though: Living and studying in Costa Rica will inspire in him awe and wonder – abiding respect for nature, wildlife, and the delicate biodiversity that keeps our ecosystems balanced and thriving.
Education at the Best International Schools in Costa Rica
While all things are relative, Costa Rica’s private schools are surprisingly affordable for many international families. That means that your child can have access to an exceptional education and one of the best international schools in Costa Rica – the best of the best, without the sky-high price tag you’d pay for the equivalent back home.
And that equates to inspiration. Here at CRIA, we foster a learning environment rooted in your student’s interests. What inspires your child? What are her hobbies, her interests, her passions? We hope to nurture them through both our curricular and extracurricular programs, for example:
- Visual and the Performing Arts: Both primary and secondary students at CRIA have access to our Visual and Performing Arts department, where we explore everything from project-based learning for the younger set, to upper-level classes focused on various art techniques, art history, and creative expression. As we foster the next generation of artists and performers, we invite them to participate in our annual talent show, our Christmas show, and other events.
- Sports: Sports are woven into the fabric of student life at CRIA. Among other offerings, we offer strong extracurricular programs in surfing, soccer, artistic swimming (and swim team), basketball, gymnastics, cheerleading, aquatic ballet, track, and more.
- Model United Nations: Nurture your young diplomat’s interests with this classic and always relevant education simulation, which allows your child to explore diplomacy, international relations, and more.
- Music: Budding musicians not only take music classes but are invited to after-school activities, including piano.
- STEAM: From robotics and Legos to coding and chess club, our extracurriculars also fuel and inspire your student’s cerebral pursuits.
- National Honor Society: More than scholarship, the National Honor Society is for students who also value leadership, character, and service to one’s community. Your solid citizen will not only find accolades here, but plenty of inspiration on how he may go forth and make the world a better place.
Inspiration is so much more than a list of opportunities and options, so we’ll leave it there. But, suffice it to say, access to one of the best schools in Costa Rica can help your child not only identify his interests but foster them.
An International Lens
Photo courtesy of www.tamarindofamilyphotos.com
The world is a vast and wonderful place, but we don’t always have time to fully explore its every corner. Living abroad, even if just for a few years in childhood, can change your child’s life forever.
There is something incredibly inspiring about stepping outside your comfort zone and into a “foreign” culture. Because, before you know it, it’s no longer foreign; it’s home. This long-term exposure to new experiences is an inspiration in itself: Equipped with such a stimulating, formative, and influential experience, it will surely direct and inform her future paths.
She may grow up to be an anthropologist, an ambassador, or an interpreter for the UN. Or, she may just be a world traveler with the kind of appreciation and understanding of other places and cultures that few people acquire in life. Either way, this experience will be one that imprints on her – and you – forever.
An Active Life
As parents, we all know how well our kids respond to a request to “go outside and play.” (Sigh.)
In Costa Rica, you’re going to have to beg them to come inside. There’s something about living in the tropics, where the weather is temperate and the sun shines year-round. So, if you want to inspire your kids to ditch the screen time (or at least, reduce it) and lead an active life, look no further than your Tamarindo backyard.
Here, kids really do spend a lot of time outside. They surf in the Pacific. They play pick-up soccer at the park. They practice yoga overlooking the ocean. They even walk to the store for X or Y thing. (Yes, kids still do that here!)
Costa Rica is a get-outdoors-and-move-your-body kind of place. So, get your kids out the door and into great habits, while those habits are still easy to form. You’ll not only inspire a love for blue skies and crashing waves, but a lifelong healthy mindset. And they can have screen time when the sun goes down.
Inspire a Love of Learning at One of the Best International Schools in Costa Rica
Great parents want great things for their children. Help your children find their inspiration, their interests, and their passions at one of the best schools in Costa Rica.
We don’t want you to just take our word for it, though. Come and visit. Tour our campus. Poke your head into one of our classes, a swim class, or an extracurricular. Get a feel for our community. See if it inspires you.
Whether you’re wondering about tuition & fees or special education in Costa Rica, cafeteria nutrition or the admissions process, we’re here to help. And when you’re ready to take the next step – to come, visit, and get your questions answered in person – we’d love to welcome you!
Get in touch to schedule a campus visit. We look forward to it!