11th December 2017

Nannies are basically caregivers for young children either in their own home or in daycare facilities. Hence it is quite imperative for them to have a thorough knowledge and understanding of the child development process, right from the prenatal stage to the adolescent. It is the responsibility of the nanny to tend to the needs of the child that he/she yearns for. According to Helen Adeosun, veteran nanny and founder of CareAcademy, Nannies are “responsible for the emotional, physical and intellectual growth of the child.”

A responsible nanny will take care of the child’s development and also cater to their needs. Nannies providing services at individual homes sometimes spend 8 – 12 hours of time with the child. Hence without the requisite knowledge of handling a child, it will be difficult for them to effectively manage the children in any kind of adverse situations. For aspirants looking to enter into the field of professional Nannying, childcare qualifications like a Nanny Training Course with some years of experience as a babysitter is usually required.

Some of the works that nannies generally engage in are as follows:

• Provide a safe, secure and nurturing environment for the child in their care
• Engage them in activities which include to work their mind and thus help them in intellectual as well as motor development
• Take care of their food habits and other conducts of life
• Teaching them good manners and other behavioural ways and help them to become responsible for themselves
• Engage them in plays and other activities to spark their creativity and imagination and as well as help the children mould their personality
• Help the child with his/her educational lessons and may even prepare exciting new lesson plans and interesting activities

Nannies are the highest paid among all the early childcare educators/providers; moreover, it is a flexible professional field where they have some amount of control over their working hours. A well-qualified and certified nanny is likely to earn way more than any regular child caregiver. Since nannies prefer to work with individual families rather than in a crèche or daycare centre, therefore instead of strictly abiding by the centre’s rules, routines and philosophies, they can formulate a customized and personalised developmental care plan for the child’s best interests, with the guidance of the parents. This kind of child rearing, by involving the nanny who has some kind of experience in child handling, certainly proves to be beneficial for the concerned child’s all-round development.

What is Babysitting?

A babysitter is someone who takes up the responsibility of looking after a child for a few hours when the parents are out for some work or so. The babysitter may play with the child, keep the child engaged in some activity and/or ensure that the child abides by the routine chalked out usually by the mother. Babysitters work on specific occasion or on any regular routine. For them, a Babysitting course which teaches them with basic child handling techniques, CPR as well as first aid skills will be beneficial.