nanny – Page 11 – Nannyjob blog

Tutoring: extra cash for nannies

Being a nanny is a rewarding career. You have the opportunity to pour into the lives of children on a daily basis; this is something that not everyone has the chance to do. But with this job comes challenges. One of these challenges might be that you aren’t making enough money. Sometimes, a nanny’s wages simply aren’t enough to make ends meet so you’re left finding ways to make extra money. This is tough, because after working full time with energetic children all week, you’re probably exhausted and not thrilled on taking on extra work.

However, finding ways to earn more cash doesn’t need to be daunting. Have you considered tutoring as a way to help supplement your income? Giving extra time in this way can help enhance your income without compromising your main job as a nanny. You usually don’t need to have huge, impressive lists of degrees from big-name colleges. You just need to have proven experience and qualifications to show that you’re able to effectively tutor and teach lessons to inquiring young minds. For example, when setting up a profile that showcases your areas of expertise on tutoring websites, you’re able to specify where you can teach, when you can teach, and what subjects you’re best suited for. Clients search for quality tutors and when they decide you’re the one they want, you can name your hourly price and start working a few hours more a week. You decide what extra jobs you take on or turn down: you can call the shots.

Worried about juggling two jobs? There are ways to effectively balance a tutoring job and your main nanny position.

Give your best.

Working two different jobs might make it easy to give less to one job. This is never a good idea, though. Showing your dedication to the children you nanny, as well as the individual student you are tutoring is the key to keeping both families happy. Give 100% in both jobs – that way you’ll have a better chance of receiving positive recommendations and word of mouth referrals to other potential tutees or families looking for nanny services.

Don’t take on too much.

Working too much can be exhausting. Taking on more work may be great in helping you pay off debt or to add more to your savings account, but doing too much can drain you quickly. If you’re fatigued and worn out all the time, you’ll be more apt to make mistakes in your tutoring or be irritable with the children you’re caring for. Always remember: when taking on extra work, be sure that it’s not going to compromise your first and main source of income.

Consider overlapping responsibilities.

Tell the parents of the children you nanny that you are considering taking on extra tutoring work. Perhaps they would consider having you tutor their children for an increased pay rate. You may be able to negotiate a higher salary that way. Or, ask your nanny family if it’s ok for you to bring your laptop with you to work so you can build tutoring lessons during nap times or other down times. Overlapping responsibilities like this can take some of the stress out of working more hours in the week.

Most of all, don’t forget that as a nanny and a tutor, you are helping develop children to be confident and capable adults. Being a good example and demonstrating solid work ethic should always be a high priority.

Make your nanny profile shine

At Nannyjob we know the essential information parents need to make a decision – location, experience, availability and what kind of job you want – so make sure these details on your nanny profile are accurate. If they aren’t, then you won’t show up when parents search! Here are some other top tips for making your profile stand out from the crowd.

The first question to ask yourself: what do parents want to know about you?

Be specific because when you’re too vague about location or availability then parents won’t bother to contact you if they don’t see what they’re looking for, or something similar, on your profile – you can select multiple regions but you probably don’t want to select all of them, particularly if you’re looking for a live out job!

Make sure the details on your profile make sense – your total years of experience should be equal to the number of years as a nanny, as a nursery nurse and in other childcare (which includes teacher or nursing). If you say you have more than 5 years experience but none as a nanny or as a nursery nurse or in childcare then how can you have more than 5 years relevant experience?

Select your job types carefully. You may be genuinely happy to work as anything but remember people will contact you based on what you say you want to do.

Add a photo! It makes it easier for parents to connect what you write to a real person if they have an idea of what you look like.

Use appropriate paragraphs and punctuation to make your description easy to read.

If you have any restrictions (for example you’re looking for a Monday and Tuesday job because you already have a job the other days state this early on.

If you’re looking to work in an area where you don’t currently live, say when you would be available to move and start work.

Give details of your qualifications and experience, as well as talking about the personal qualities which make you a great candidate. Remember that this section is all about what you can do for the family, how you interact with children, what you like to do in your job and how you use the knowledge and skills that you’ve gained. Make sure you really tailor it for a nanny job. Your interests, hobbies and family background are less important than skills which are relevant to childcare and show real passion and enthusiasm for your work.

Above all, be yourself!

When parents won’t listen (or change)

As a childcarer you may sometimes find yourself in the situation where you have repeatedly tried to communicate with the parents about an issue and been ignored, or told that the parents will do something only to find they haven’t. At this point you need to make a decision about how important the issue is, to the children and to you, and whether you can work with things are they are.

Any concerns about the children’s safety or well-being must be reported. If you feel a parent’s actions or inaction mount up to abuse or neglect then you have a duty to get in touch with your relevant local authority.

Where it’s not a safeguarding issue, but makes carrying out your job difficult for you then you need to decide what actions you can take without the overt support of the parents, assuming they are happy for you to do so. Children can be quick to notice inconsistencies so acknowledge any differences between what you say and what the parents say, however they are also capable of learning which behaviours are acceptable with which adult and as long as you are consistent with them they will learn (even if it takes a little longer!).

All this, though, can make your job extremely stressful. Finding ways to wind down at the end of the day, or even quietly blow off steam half way through, are vital for your well-being. Feeling alone and unsupported can really sap your morale so share your feelings with your loved ones or friends. Often as nannies we feel we can’t talk to anyone about what goes on in our job but it’s perfectly okay to reveal our feelings and frustrations. As a general rule talking in ‘I’ terms (I feel I…. etc) won’t give anything away and it will help you acknowledge your own emotions instead of bottling them up. Sport can be a great way to relieve frustration, and crafts that occupy your hands such as knitting or card-making can be a good way to calm down and focus on something positive and productive. Creating a time to work through your feelings and set them to rest is another good way to keep your kind clear and preventing stress in your job invading your life. Work on accepting what you can’t change and seeing the positives in the things you can.

Ultimately if you feel the parents are making it impossible for you to continue, or you are unable to destress at least at the end of a working week then it might be time for you to move on. You can change the children but you can’t change the parents, and sometimes accepting that is the hardest thing of all.

Sleep Difficulties with Children – How a Nanny Can Help

Having a young child who won’t or can’t sleep can have a knock-on effect for the entire family.

Sleep problems for babies and young children are becoming more commonplace and routines can be extremely difficult to stick to, especially when you’re not around your child 24/7. That’s where a nanny can step in and help to keep the routine running smoothly so that everyone in the family stays fully rested.

Continue reading “Sleep Difficulties with Children – How a Nanny Can Help”

A Nanny’s Guide to Staying Healthy

Life as a nanny can be hectic and exhausting. You spend all day taking care of the family you work for, but who takes care of you?

If you want to do your job well, and more importantly, live a healthy life, it’s important that you take good care of your health and well-being to avoid getting ill or simply burning out.

Follow these 5 tips to help keep your health in tip top condition:

Continue reading “A Nanny’s Guide to Staying Healthy”

Nannying for children in hospital

Most children will end up visiting the hospital at some point in their life. The lucky ones have a quick trip to A&E and go straight home but sometimes a longer stay is needed. This can be a very testing time for the family and you may need to step into the breach to provide support but it can be difficult to know what to do beyond keeping everything ticking over.

If there are other children in the family your job probably won’t change much athough you might end up working longer hours to allow your employers to spend time at the hospital. Ask whether siblings are allowed to visit and if the parents would like your charges to see each other. Bear in mind that some hospitals don’t allow children to go onto the ward so be ready to suggest other ways your charges can keep in touch, such as drawing pictures or speaking on skype.

You can support the parents by packing supplies for your charge ready to take to the hospital. Hospital food often isn’t appetising so if they are allowed to take snacks in then you can go to the shops and prepare a care package for them to take in. You can also keep up a stream of clean pyjamas and other clothes as hospitals can be hot and sticky places. If allowed, toys from home will help relieve some of the boredom of being stuck in a hospital bed, and for school aged children keep in touch with school in case they ask to do some homework! It’s a huge help for parents to be able to come home, empty a bag and repack it with everything that’s been laid out ready.

Volunteer to take a turn sitting at the bedside to give your employer’s a break and provide a change of scenery for your charge. Your employers will feel more relaxed leaving their poorly child with someone they know and trust too. Children’s development doesn’t stop when they’re in hospital so you can talk to the doctors and nurses about providing some suitable activities. Encourage them to play, talk and laugh with you as they would at home.

You also need to recognise that it’s a worrying time for you. Most nannies become deeply aatached to their charges and it’s difficult to see someone you love in distress. Look after yourself and don’t be afraid to share your feelings with your family or nanny friends.

When they come home from hospital your charge may have medication to take or specific care routines to follow. Make sure you’re clear on what these are and don’t be afraid to ask questions. Communication will be more important than ever and be sensitive to the fact that your employers might want to check in with you more often to see how everything is going.

If you’re a nanny and have some tips about working with a hospitalised charge don’t hestitate to share them on our Facebook page, Twitter or our messageboards.

Nanny references

Writing a nanny a reference can be tough. It usually means your childcarer is moving on and whether it’s your choice or theirs it’s often an emotional time. A glowing reference will help your nanny find a wonderful new job and show them how much you appreciate the job they’ve done for you.

Writing a nanny a reference can be tough. It usually means your child carer is moving on and whether it’s your choice or theirs it’s often an emotional time. A glowing reference will help your nanny find a wonderful new job and show them how much you appreciate the job they’ve done for you.

A good reference is about a page of A4 long. It often takes the form of a letter and includes your contact details so prospective employers can contact you. It should be written in the first person and split into easily readable paragraphs, each with a theme, for example your nanny’s day to day duties, their attitude to work, any particular skills they have and times they’ve gone above and beyond. You might find it helpful to refer to previous annual performance reviews when you sit down to write.

Give plenty of detail about your nanny’s current job and how that has evolved over time. If your nanny started when your child was a baby and they’re now at school you have 4+ years of very varied duties to cover! Don’t assume that a new-to-the-nannying-world prospective employer will know what ‘usual nursery duties’ or ‘daily care’ involves. Expanding on these shows what your expectations of your nanny were on a day to day basis, and of course you should comment on how well these expectations were met.

Providing specific examples will also help a prospective employer build up a complete picture of your nanny. Perhaps your nanny helped your child overcome shyness or transformed a fussy eater? By giving details of how they accomplished that you can demonstrate their approach to the children in their care as well as showcasing a positive impact they’ve had on your family.

Think about the kind of skills or attributes you really appreciate in your nanny. If your nanny is very organised or an excellent time-keeper then mention that in their reference. If the children are always laughing when you come home in the evening or they always have something they created that day to show you then share that with prospective employers. Bear in mind when writing a reference that your nanny may not always work as a nanny, or even in childcare, so highlight two or three highly transferrable skills.

A trickier task is writing a reference for a nanny who has been less than satisfactory. In this case a brief reference confirming length of employment and duties with an invitation for prospective employers to contact you will be more than sufficient.

Expect to be contacted whether you give a positive or neutral reference. Prospective employers will want to both check the veracity of your reference and ask detailed questions of their own. Be factual and honest – if they ask whether you ever needed to use a disciplinary procedure and you did then you should answer the question fully and truthfully. If that was the cause for terminating the nanny’s employment you are allowed to share that. If it was resolved satisfactorily use it as an example of how your nanny took your feedback on board and improved their performance.

Writing a reference is one of the kindest and most lasting things you can do for an excellent nanny and it will serve them all through their career, so it’s worth taking the time to do the task fully and well.

Premature babies and childcare

A baby born before the 37th week of pregnancy is considered premature. Premature babies born at 35 or 36 weeks may be perfectly healthy but slightly smaller than expect but before that they may have not had time to fully develop in the womb and need to continue developing outside. The lungs are the last organ to develop, which is why mothers at risk of preterm labour are often given steroid injections, so a premature baby may need help breathing in the first weeks and their lungs remain fragile for some time.

A premature baby who had breathing difficulties may be at increased risk of catching certain infections, such as RSV which is common in children under 5. Your doctor is the best person to advise you on the risks to your child but there is a higher chance of catching an illness in a group setting, so a care provider who comes to your home such as a nanny or who cares for a small group of children such as a childminder might be safer in the first years of life. It’s important that care providers are made aware of prematurity as they should take corrected age, rather than actual age, into account when assessing development and may need to be especially careful about hygiene. Some childminders, for example, will accept children with minor illnesses but you may be uncomfortable with that if you child is prone to infections so you will need to come to an agreement.

A good childcare provider will use their knowledge of healthy, term infant and child development to monitor progress bearing the adjusted age in mind. Most childcare courses cover child development in detail and, as premature babies may show some developmental delay, it’s important to bear the need to identify key milestones in mind when choosing a childcare provider, particularly a nanny where no minimum qualification is needed. One thing that can be difficult as a parent of a premature child is the temptation to make comparisons with other children. This is particularly obvious in a nursery setting where many children of the same age are grouped together but it’s important to remember that each child develops individually right from conception and a corrected age rather than actual age is more important up to the age of two.

It can be very difficult to take the decision to leave a child who was premature in childcare. Parents who are used to taking extra care with their baby may find it harder than usual to leave them with someone else, even when it is a professional child carer. You may need a longer settling in or handover period to adjust both baby and parent to the new circumstances.

Although prematurity can have lasting effects many babies are perfectly healthy and show only a slight delay so although it’s important to bear the circumstances surrounding their birth in mind, particularly when assessing development, most need no more care than a baby of their corrected age when entering childcare

Explaining Terrorism to Children

As parents and caregivers, it can be extremely difficult to answer questions from children about terrorism. It’s a heart-breaking subject that you might wish you could push away or not discuss, but it’s quickly becoming a necessity due to the world that we live in.

The act of terrorism and the horror it brings is hard for even most adults to come to terms with and understand, which is why, following the terrible events occurring all over the world, we’ve put together some advice to help explain terrorism to your children.

Continue reading “Explaining Terrorism to Children”

How You Can Help Your Nanny Family Save Money

Good childcare can be expensive and some families might find themselves struggling to balance the cost of their other living expenses.

As a nanny, you can help to ease the burden for your nanny family by looking for opportunities to save them money.

Here’s how you can help!

Coupons!

Couponing is HUGE, and people everywhere, particularly large families are hunting down coupons in a bid to save money.

The idea of cutting out coupons and vouchers might seem somewhat tedious, but it doesn’t have to be. The next time you’re sitting down while the kids are watching a movie or taking a nap, have a quick look through magazines and newspapers, cut out a few coupons that apply to you and save them for later.

Follow these top tips to help you stay on top of the couponing game:

Subscribe to your local paper – Check that the papers include coupons that are relevant to you and if the saving exceeds the cost, subscribe to one or two so that you can start building your coupons.
Check store policies – Does your local supermarket accept more than one coupon per transaction or item? Find out what each shop you visit allows so that you can save time and take advantage of every saving opportunity.
Save the junk mail – You know the wad of leaflets pushed through the door on an almost daily basis? Some of these will include coupons or special offers from your local shop or supermarket. Look out for them!
Pick up a magazine/leaflet – As you finish your weekly shop, look for a leaflet or magazine containing store offers and coupons that you can take with you. You’ll be able to plan your next shop in advance to coincide with new deals or sales.
Pay attention to expiry dates – There’s no point having a purse full of out-of-date coupons that you have to search through at the checkout in the hopes of finding one that’s valid. Try to use coupons sooner rather than later, and do a weekly purge of any that have expired.
Plan ahead – Use your coupons and information about sales or special offers to plan your shopping trip in advance. Make a list and stick to it so you know beforehand exactly how much your shop will cost and what you’ll save.
Look online – You can find a whole host of coupons online. Be prepared to spend a little longer searching for coupons you can use, but the savings will be worth it!
Follow your favourites brands on social media – Some brands will only post their best offers to their loyal social media followers so be sure to follow, like and connect with them on all platforms to stay up-to-date with the latest deals.

Loyalty Cards/Reward Schemes

Most shops and online retailers now have loyalty schemes that reward you with points or discounts when you shop. Things like the Sainsburys Nectar, Boots Card, even the Costa coffee card and many more can help you save money on things like; the weekly shop, clothes, pharmacy, soft play centers and fuel.

If you shop somewhere on a regular basis, it won’t hurt to ask if they have a loyalty card.

Multi-Buy Deals/Special Offers

Multi-buy deals and special offers can really help you in the long-term, particularly when they’re for frozen food or non-perishable items. Think about the future when looking at multi-buy deals and remember that spending a little more now could save you money next week.

Find the Freebies

There are plenty of online retailers and companies offering freebies of new products in exchange for something small. Some want reviews of their products, others simply want to spread the word. Some might want your email or home address for marketing purposes, so check the T’s & C’s before you sign up!

Shop Smarter

Resist temptation – When you start collecting coupons, or building points, it’s easy to fall into the trap of buying things you don’t really need. Just because something is buy-one-get-one-half-price doesn’t necessarily mean you should buy two, if you don’t need two. Don’t be tempted to buy something you don’t need and won’t use, just because you have a coupon.
Shop around – Don’t be afraid to shop at different places. Just because you can get everything on your shopping list from one shop, doesn’t mean that you should. Other shops may offer certain items cheaper or have offers/coupons that you can use to bring your overall cost down.
Consider cheaper alternatives – There are many different brands of items to choose from when you shop. Take a simple tin of beans for example. There will usually be at least two different brands of beans at your local supermarket. Compare them see what you might save by switching to a different brand or a home brand and give it a try.

Use our top tips to start saving today. Apply them to your own spending as well as your nanny family’s and you’ll both be saving money in no time.

If you have any money saving tips you’d like to share, get in touch in the comments!