A day in the life of a Costa Rican schoolchild. Costa Rica is a country in Central America. The language they speak is Spanish and their flag is red white and blue just like the United Kingdom's Union Jack. It is a country of natural beauty, with much of its land covered by rainforests, mangroves and beaches.
It has a tropical climate, which means it is hot and very humid, where 635 centimetres of rain can be seen. can fall each year. Over five times more rain falls here in Costa Rica than the UK.
Many amazing and interesting animals live here. Turtles, the manatee, crocodiles, jaguars, sloths, monkeys, lizards and many tropical birds. Costa Rica has a population of 4.8 million and 1.1 million of those are children.
They typically start school aged 5 and leave when they are 18. They spend their days studying many of the same subjects as you do. At this school, the Escuela de Goli in Metina, Limón, many of the children's families work in agriculture. There are around 100 pupils who begin their day with assembly. My name is Alison. Alison is a pupil here and she is 10 years old.
School starts early in Costa Rica, Monday to Friday. Alison lives locally and her parents work on a nearby banana plantation. Sometimes I come by bike and sometimes by walking. For lunch, the children eat a healthy, balanced meal.
Rice, beans, a little bit of chicken and fresh. Many of the lessons that these children study are the same subjects as the UK. Lessons include maths, English and sports. My favourite class is physical education because I like football a lot, with Costa Rica. In most classrooms there are 20 pupils who spend seven hours a day, Monday to Friday, studying just like you.
For many children living here in Costa Rica, learning English is a very important part of their schooling. Alison has high ambitions for what she would like to do when she leaves school. I would like to speak English or be a doctor. For Allison and her friends growing up in Costa Rica, their school day is all about working hard in lessons and enjoying their time at school.
If you were showing Allison around your school, what would you tell her about your day?