Choosing a Babysitter.

Choosing a reliable babysitter whom you can trust with your children can be tedious and down right scary, especially if your children are still very young.  Knowing what to ask, what to check and what instructions and information to give this person is of critical importance. Although it’s scary, being cautious and doing your homework will give you peace of mind and that’s worth its weight in gold.

If you don’t have good friends that know of an excellent sitter then an agency is another safe route to take as long as they are a reputable company which has very high standards for their staff. It is of great importance that, when contacting the agency, you make them are aware of the age of your children and your needs for the evening that you will be away. You should also ensure that the sitter suggested has experience, has been reference checked and has her own transport. It is also important that the agency sends you a sitter whose age, experience and training is suitable to your children’s needs.  An agency, if they do ensure these factors, you may just solve your babysitting requirements for all time! Reputable agencies definitely do take the pressure off you to find what you are looking for.

Younger teenagers do not posses the emotional or physical maturity to deal with the many problems that could arise; in fact some of the situations that could arise may even be caused by this. A good general rule to apply: the younger the children, the older the babysitter should be and the more experience they should have. The sitters level of maturity is of vital importance to your children’s care and your own peace of mind. If you are comfortable with just anyone then that’s your choice. However considering the babysitters own behaviour and maturity is a major consideration before leaving your children with her or him. Another consideration you should take into account is that; should you leave your children with anyone under the age of 16, you are legally responsible for anything that occurs in your absence.

Again if you are doing the research yourself, it’s important to hold interviews with any potential sitters, to ensure that they are appropriate for your children. Arrange to interview the candidates. Invite them to your home; find a good interview guide that will help you in knowing what questions to ask. Keep it casual so that you get to know what they like on a professional and personal level. If you interview a candidate that you feel may be “the one”, introduce her/him to your children and observe their interaction. Let the children lead the interaction, from showing her their room, or favourite toys etc. Do they interact well? Is the sitter genuinely interested in your children and do they like her as well? Your children will be a great indicator of the sitters sincerity and suitability. After she leaves chat to the children and value their opinion of sitter.  The combination of your and their instincts will give you the impression you need.

Some of the qualities and personality traits you should ascertain in your ideal candidate include:

• Is she in good health? She should preferably not smoke, be experiencing any illness at the time of the babysitting and have no contagious diseases/viruses.
• Is she dependable and responsible? She must be dependable in the sense that if she experiences any problems whatsoever, she feels confident enough to contact you about it. It should be clear that  she is willing to this and that if she cant make it to the job for any reason she gives you enough time to find a suitable replacement. She needs to realize that she is responsible for your children’s health and welfare whilst they are in her care.
• Does she have a genuine interest in child care?  She should be understanding and love being around your children and this can be shown through her experience, training and as mentioned previously, your children will automatically know whether her interest is genuine or not.
• Self confidence is also very important. Your children will respond better to a sitter who can remain calm in all situations. She should be self confident and present herself in a respectable manner. She should be respectful of the children in the same way that you are. She should have good manners, and respect for the privacy of your family; both for your personal space, possessions and information. Cross questioning her about the previous babysitting jobs and families she has worked for and her attitude towards them is another great indication.
• She should show a basic understanding of the different stages of a child’s development. For example she should know that whilst removing privileges from an 8 year old may work for discipline, a 2 minute time out for a 2 year old will work better than taking away his toys, if she knows how to implement it properly or that for example, while a child of 10 years old goes to bed at 9pm and 4 year old may need to be in bed at 7pm.
• She should be adaptable to your pattern and routines and have a responsible outlook towards working with you. This can be evaluated by the information she requests from you, emergency numbers, the route to the closest hospital, what the children are allowed to eat and what they are not etc.
• Above all trust your instincts!

Make sure your sitter knows the following basic safety guidelines:

• Never give a child any medication without written consent from you.
• Never leave the children alone outside or even inside, not even for a minute.
• Children must never be left alone near water. Infants and small children under 5 years of age can drown in a matter of minutes in only a few centimetres of water.
• Do not give children under the age of 5 hard sweets, popcorn, nuts or other foods that may cause blockage. Large pieces of food, particularly meat, should always be chopped into edible portions before being given to younger children.
• Keep children away from small objects, plastic bags and balloons. Children should also not be permitted to play in the kitchen, near the stairs, windows and should be monitored to ensure they do not go near electrical power points.

It is important that both your sitter and your children know the rules for while you are gone, and it is a good idea to have your children sit in on this explanation so that there is no arguing with the sitter from the children about instructions once you are gone. Discuss snacks, rules for TV, time for bed, and what you expect from your sitter and children.

When you get home spend a few minutes going over the evening with your sitter. Ask about the things you think the sitter may have had problems with. Often sitters are hesitant to discuss problems they have encountered unless asked directly. The next morning chat to your children about the evening and whether they enjoyed having her there. What they ate, what activities they did and if anything happened that made them feel uncomfortable.

With all of this behind you, you can feel more at ease next time in the knowledge that all your hard work has paid off, your children are safe and happy, and you can enjoy your evenings out without much worry!

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