Nicaragua attracts surfers, adventurers, beachgoers, backpackers and beyond. More recently, San Juan del Sur has also begun to draw families, as well.   The expansion of San Juan del Sur Day School has allowed numerous families to relocate to Nicaragua to explore their adventurous side while maintaining an inspiring, sustainable, creative and developmentally appropriate education for their children. Read on to find out how…

Location, Location, Location

San Juan del Sur Day School is located on a sustainable organic farm at Finca Las Nubes (cloud farm). On any given day, our students can observe up to three different kinds of monkeys, sloths, and multiple species of birds. The farm has spectacular views of Costa Rica to the south, miles of beaches to the west and volcanoes rising out of Lake Nicaragua to the east. There are protected valleys for farming and large open pastures for grazing animals surrounded by natural forest with creeks and waterfalls. San Juan del Sur Day School embraces an outdoor education and encourages our students to not only learn, but to experience.  Our dependable school bus and our driver, Alvaro, make multiple stops throughout the town of San Juan del Sur, making the school accessible and convenient.

International Student Body & Bilingual Opportunities
San Juan del Sur Day School educates children from all over the world. Listen closely on the playground and one might hear

English, Spanish, Dutch, French, German, and Italian. An international education offers the opportunity to celebrate diversity in a spirit of understanding and tolerance and to develop a positive regard and awareness of other people. This is an education that goes far beyond the confines of the classroom and sees in the learning process the chance for some remarkable lessons. An appreciation of different cultures and backgrounds creates a sense of openness and understanding that enables students to work well with others and for many, to lead people with different viewpoints in a cohesive team. A key factor for success in adulthood is a child’s ability to communicate with people from different backgrounds. We see an opportunity to develop cross-cultural understanding, an international outlook and an ability to build quality relationships with people from different backgrounds.  Students are intentionally exposed to English as their primary language of instruction, as well Spanish via our Nicaraguan teaching assistants.  While circle time might be lead in English, arts and crafts are taught in Spanish with Teacher Yolanda.  Snacks, lunch, and recess are a free for all where we encourage our students to share their native tongues, practice other languages, and enjoy the most common language of all – play!

Enrichment Program

The enrichment program at San Juan del Sur Day School is unparalleled. Not only do we keep our students engaged academically, but we also offer them an amazing variety of activities in the afternoons from 3-4 p.m. Activities include: taekwondo, soccer, swimming, yoga & meditation, horseback riding, dance, circus training, chess, skateboarding, volleyball. Members of the San Juan del Sur community who are experts in their area of interest lead our enrichment classes. If you have a special skill that you would like to share with our students, please contact our afternoon enrichment coordinator, Alethea Smith, at senoragriner@gmail.com.

Diverse and Inspiring Staff
The teachers and staff at San Juan del Sur Day School come from a wide variety of educational backgrounds and share their

highly developed skills with each other and our students. Our teachers have graduated from prestigious universities in the United States, Canada, Belgium, and Nicaragua and hold Bachelors and Masters degrees in Early Childhood Development, Mathematics, English, Art, Spanish, Participative Education, Special Education, Developmental Services, School Counseling, and Education and Learning. They have also been trained in an array of teaching philosophies and styles including a Montessori center-based approach, Constructivist theories, International Baccalaureate curriculum, and Americorps leadership skills. Our teachers bring a combined total of over 50 years of teaching experience to San Juan del Sur Day School. Aside from their academic experience, our teachers love to play! You can find them surfing, swimming, gardening, dancing, building, and sharing all of their skills with our students.

Giving Back
San Juan del Sur Day School aids in the education of local children so that they become resourceful, international citizens, assisting them in becoming productive members of both their local and global society. San Juan del Sur Day School currently provides scholarships or financial aid to approximately 16% of our students with the goal of sustaining 25% of our total student body with educational assistance in the near future. Funding for these scholarships is generated via school tuition and individual sponsors. A portion of each annual enrollment fee is designated for our scholarship fund. For information on our fund or to make a donation, please visit our donate page or click the button below!  Thank you!

To learn more about San Juan del Sur Day School, please contact Director of Development, Sarah Fahey, at sarah@sanjuandelsurdayschool.com. We look forward to welcoming you and your families!