new as a nanny, need a few pointers (from parents and nannies!)

[el1za]

I have a two year old in my care three times a week who speaks very, very little English (a few words here a there). We're getting around that and communicating and I speak enough German and have been around enough two year olds to have an idea a lot of the time as to what she wants. It's hard work, though, and I was wondering if anyone has any ideas to make it easier on her as well as myself? It's frustrating for her when I miss her cues.

Secondly and this is the main thing, she's an only child and the local playground is absolutely dead. We've seen a few other children in ones or twos with their parents, but no kind of atmosphere where she can play with others and be a bit sociable. I'd like her to have someone to play with. I was wondering if anyone else has had this problem, and I was also wondering if there were ways to find other nannies/childminders/mums around who would be up for some play dates at the park?

Any ideas and advice would be very welcome.

Have you tried going to some local play groups? There are listings on Netmums.

Immerse, immerse, immerse. Just talk all the time, point out everything, repeat until you're blue in the face then repeat some more. Interaction where you can have a meaningful conversation is probably a way off but it's all going in. Don't speak German to her but do repeat back in English when she asks you for something, pointing to the object or doing the action at the same time. Had she been younger if have suggested incorporating some baby sign and getting her parents to do the same in German so you had a common 'language' (well, a support system) but it will probably just go quicker without now.

As for the second, local playgroups and play dates, websites like the nannyjob meet other nannies messageboards or just trying a different playground/park should find you some other children for her to interact with.

Good luck :)

I wouldn't worry so much about the language aspect - they pick things up so quickly at 2. A friend of mine who was German, only spoke German to her child and her husband was Korean - he only spoke Korean to her little boy. He didn't say much at 2, but by three he was trilingual.
Where in the country are you? What sort of weekly budget have you been given?
In London and the home counties they have toddler world sessions which are fantastic for 2 year olds - they usually have little gym equipment and trampolines.
Baby swimming is also great and you tend to get the same people going week on week.
Monkey music is really good for encouraging language development as they sing the same songs.
I'd try a few things out and see which groups have more nannies going to them.
If you go onto netmums they list all the local groups