AP to nanny

[JinxyCat]

Hi all,

We have a lovely au pair who is with us to build up her experience so that she can become a nanny. We have one 3 year old, and one 3 month old.

She is currently takes the three year old to playgroups and various activities (firstly with me, to make sure she was comfortable, and now by herself). She has completed her level 2 & 3 childcare NVQs, and has a pediatric first aid certificate and had experience as working in a nursery.

She occasionally watches both kids, for very short periods of time (while I shower/cook/do washing) - and we do lots of things together too.

I would love it if she could become our full time nanny when I go back to work in October this year, as I will unfortunately have to go back to work full time.

My question is this - what sorts of things would you recommend that I think about in terms of 'training' her to be a good nanny - and how should I go about it? I'm just making sure that I'm not just flavouring things with my perspective...

We have had two live in nannies, of varying experience/skills, and I was thinking that I should start scheduling monthly catch-ups where we go through 'what went well' and 'even better if's and then asking her what's going well/badly from her side. Does that sound reasonable?

And what things would people say are 'good' things for a nanny to know...my personal things are:

• Making sure the house is tidy (tidy up one game before starting next);
• Doing the jobs which always need doing (emptying/loading dishwasher; hanging out/folding washing; cleaning kitchen counters/floor).

I guess I'm also asking those people 'good' nannies, what made them good? I'm wanting to give her the best start for other families, as well as us!

Or am I being too ambitious, and is it just an experience thing - so I don't need to do anything?

And has anyone else done this, and has any tips on how to make it go well?

Your things are about cleaning nothing to do with childcare at all.Not being funny but you are a mum not a teacher .She will either be a natural nanny or not .
All you are doing is showing her how you parent .You might be a brilliant parent but you could also be a rubbish one.

Ah, I can see your point. I guess we've already talked about scheduling activities so there's variety both for the kids and us, so I wasn't thinking about that too much.

We aim to do slightly different activities each day (craft today, brio tomorrow, etc); and always take him out to get some fresh air (garden, park, basketball court in the estate near us); and do a combination of playdates, play groups, and museums - so I think she's seeing/doing a lot of 'good' behaviour there.

And we've jointly put together a super nanny style routine so that both of us are on the same page about timings for food/drink etc.)

I was also thinking if I picked up on tips from people on here about what good/great nannies do, I'd be benefiting us and her future families.

I know that the two things I mentioned above made my husband and I very happy, but then so did the daily diary which we asked our nannies to complete and them taking pictures of them on activities during the day (both of which we're doing with our AP/trainee nanny).

You're right, I'm a mum not a teacher but was thinking that as I know she wants to be a nanny that maybe I should be doing more. But maybe that's me just being a bit OTT ;

i agree with opinions that she is either natural at nannying or not. if the former, you should know by now /i guess she is with you for a few months now/. if you have doubts about leaving the children with her fulltime, then dont.
i am also surprised that you mention the cleaning when thinking about 'good things for a nanny to know' rather than things that involve the children. ie is she able to handle comfortably both of the children on her own all day long. can she feed them healthy food, is she able to listen to them and watch out for signs of them beeing unwell, stay calm if there is and accindent, follow you wishes re schedule, food, outings etc

If you're happy with her as a childcarer and you call it "au pair", I expect you'll be happy with her if you call her a "nanny" too!

It seems like you're doing plenty that will be useful & transferrable, and having both level 2 & 3 qualifications, she knows plenty of "in theory" stuff too.

I think the main difference between being PT & FT is how you juggle your other duties with childcare. My youngest charge started nursery recently so now I do ironing etc in the afternoons (or occasionally when she's exhausted after the weekend & just wants to ball up on the sofa) so I'm available to do crafts, go on outings, sit & read or play other games with her.
That kind of thing will differ from child to child as they will all have different routines and be different ages etc. You pick up on the routine of the family & figure out ways that everything can fit together, it will be a mix of common sense & juggling!

Sooooo I guess I'm saying, you're already being a great employer by communicating very well by the sound of if! You both get the chance to figure out what works, but there won't be a one size fits all trick that means she magically learns to be a great nanny. You're already on the right track & sound like you'll be understanding about her level of experience too - ideal as a first employer so relax & keep doing what you've been doing!

Oh, yes - things like cooking proper meals, etc, I'm guessing if she's been living in your house for a while then she knows what your expectations are, there. As you said she already watches both of them sole charge for short times, are you comfortable that she can do it for long stretches?

Thanks for the comments so far, I feel better that I'm on the right track.

I would be unsure about leaving her with both children now (I find it hard work, and DS2 is still breastfeeding) but I do think that I'll be comfortable by the time I'm back at work. DS1 will soon be starting nursery (half days) so I'm thinking when he does that will give her time with DS2 which will be good for her to make her more comfortable/confident.

She's definitely responsive to their needs, and is making good independent suggestions as to what she could do with them.

She is a bit under-confident in the cooking department, but that's something we're working on as I'm getting her to cook one night a week - and she helps me with the food preparation if the two boys are either sleeping or playing happily by themselves (for DS2 this is obviously lying on the playmat or in highchair)

Oh, and at the moment she's doing either mornings or afternoons - and I'm paying her extra to do a full day with DS1 so I can go see my godson with DS2 as a test run for her so we can both feel more confident about it. I'm thinking we'll continue to gently transition in that way leading up t

...to when I go back to work.

And in terms of cleaning, I don't expect her to do any of
The tidying apart from of toys which have been played with - and the dishwasher/clothes thing is a task which everyone in the house shares, but is nice if she has the time during the day to do without being asked.