Costa Rica Manuel Antonio Location Costa Rica is a peaceful country in Central America. It is located between Panama and Nicaragua. The territory is 51,000 sq kilometers (20,000 square miles) and the population is four million people. Costa Rica's literacy rate is 93%, which is among the highest in the developing world. Costa Rica has no army and 35% of its land is devoted to national parks or reserves. The country has an incredible variety of climates, vegetation, wildlife and topography. Manuel Antonio National Park has some of the best beaches on Costa Rica’s Pacific coast for swimming and snorkeling. The park is also wonderful for short walks or full-day hikes. This park is a combination of rain forests, beautiful white sand beaches abounding in flora and fauna and great views. You can see howler, squirrel, and white-faced monkeys; two-toed sloths, coatimundis, raccoons, iguanas and over 350 species of birds and other animal species. In Manuel Antonio, the mountains meet the ocean. It is paradise! Our facilities have a great view of the ocean and are just 2 miles from beach. About the School We offer the unique possibility of combining Spanish classes in the city with classes at Manuel Antonio National Park (beach and rainforest). We offer personalized attention in a warm, professional and friendly atmosphere. Our teachers are experts at teaching Spanish to students of all skill levels. Classes are taught in mini groups of eight students maximum. The average during most of the year is two-three students per class. Students can receive college credit for their classes with us. We organize cultural activities and tours at reasonable prices. We pick students up at the airport at no extra cost. Students who are interested can participate in volunteer work and Internships programs with local organizations. Learning Spanish with us is exciting, efficient and very relaxed. Our methodology is based on the modern communicative approach emphasizing conversation; however, we are flexible and recognize each student's particular learning needs. Students will learn the language by using it in practical situations, facilitating their ability to think in Spanish. The classes are well organized and follow daily lesson plans. All teachers plan their day's classes in advance, in order to incorporate each student's particular needs. The Highlights Merengue and Salsa dance lessons are offered once a week. There are visits to museums, presentations of movies and other cultural activities which change every week. Students can also participate in cooking classes. Once a month, students bring typical dishes from their country to share. This program promotes intercultural personal communication, and provides the opportunity to develop complementary academic knowledge and practical skills in professional, linguistic and intercultural fields. If you want to do volunteer work, you can talk with our staff to determine which organizations will meet your expectations. It is possible to do volunteer work in San José while you are studying or outside of San José after finishing your Spanish program. The Courses  We offer mini group classes, private tutoring, or a combination of mini group and private tutoring. Classes emphasize oral communication to achieve specific goals. Teachers are rotated to ensure that the student is exposed to a variety of Spanish accents. The pace of the class is set according to the student's language skill development progress. Our staff has participated in ACTFL-OPI (American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages - Oral Proficiency Interview) workshops and some of them are OPI Spanish official testers. A. Mini group: 4 hours a day Students meet for four hours from Monday through Friday in mini groups of eight students or fewer. These classes usually take place in the morning from 8 AM to 12 noon. Some students might be assigned classes in the afternoon from 1 to 5 PM. B. Private tutoring: 4 hours a day One-on-one instruction is designed especially for people who want to advance at their own pace, work on specific vocabulary, have special needs or who have limited time. We recommend this program for students who are taking classes for only one week. These classes take place according to the student's preference, in the morning from 8 AM to 12 noon or in the afternoon from 1 to 5 PM, according to the availability of classrooms and teachers. C. Mini group: 4 hours + 2 hours private tutor a day This program is designed especially for people who want to reinforce what is being learned in the group classes or who want to work on specific vocabulary. The schedule for this program is: mini group class in the morning from 8 to 12 and private instruction from 1:15 to 3:15 in the afternoon. Accommodation Homestay We offer the opportunity to live with a Costa Rican host family. A private room, keys to the house, breakfast, dinner and a laundry service are all provided. We choose the families according to their interest in sharing with foreigners and the evaluations we have received from previous students. Some families can accommodate students who are traveling with children.   Apartments We rent fully furnished apartments which are located just one block from our facilities in San José. Each apartment has a computer with internet access through cable modem, refrigerator, stove, microwave oven, cooking utensils and TV. Room cleaning service is provided. Each apartment has 3 bedrooms with a double bed in each room. It is possible to rent the whole apartment or just one room. Hotels: If students do not want to stay with a host family, there is a wide variety of hotels nearby. Prices (San José & Manuel Antonio Beach)   Weeks 1 2 3 4 Additional A. Group Tuition only $305 $600 $810 $1040 $250 Tuition & home stay $425 $820 $1140 $1480 $350 B. Private tutoring 4 hrs. a day   C. Group 4 hrs. + priv. tutoring 2 hrs. a day Tuition only $520 $1030 $1470 $1860 $465 Tuition & home stay $640 $1250 $1800 $2300 $565   Home stay only $120 $220 $330 $440 $100 ·         Maximum 8 students in a class. ·         10% discount for any additional week after 4 weeks. ·         Additional private tutoring hour: $20 Additional day with host family: $20 ·         Prices Include: some cultural activities, airport pick up in San José, books and materials, home stay; private room, breakfast, dinner & laundry service.  Apartment accommodations in San José One block from our school, 3 bedrooms, 1 bath, fully furnished, cable, Internet access and TV included.  Sharing apartment (private room): $30/night; $160/week; $500/month (30% more if it is double) Whole apartment: $60/night; $350/week; $1200/month Cancellations: Once the program has started there are no refunds. In case of serious illness or emergency, 50% will be refunded for the remainder of the program. The US$100 deposit is non- refundable. All pricing is in US$