mathmarm Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 Okay, Hive, help me think this through.... I think that I have found a great foreign language opportunity for our family. But I have never done this sort of thing before: I would like to hire a young mother, 5x a week, for 3 hours at a time, to help me care for and teach my 3 young children (2yo, 5yo and 9yo) a foreign language. The nanny will be bringing her own children (1yo, and 3yo) and the family will be eating dinner with us each night that they are here. Neither the nanny, nor her children speak (very good) English, but she was an elementary teacher in her country and is very good with little kids. Between her and her kids, we'd have a complete language model. She has many ideas for games to teach comprehension, vocabulary and phrases to small kids. Is this an excellent opportunity to provide a private immersion experience for my kids, or am I over-excited and missing something? What are the logistics that I haven't though of yet? What are some problems that could arise? How much should I expect to pay for this, reasonably speaking? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 No, it's pretty much an excellent opportunity, so long as the two of you have a solid game plan for caring for the kids, including the three littler people. That's where it could get tricky. Otherwise it's awesome. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
regentrude Posted November 4, 2015 Share Posted November 4, 2015 A possible problem is the large age gap between the 9 y/o and the younger siblings/guest kids. I imagine it difficult to find appropriate activities that hold a 9 y/o's attention if they are interesting for 1-3 y/os. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
katilac Posted November 5, 2015 Share Posted November 5, 2015 I think it's potentially a good opportunity, but I would lose my everlovin' mind if I had company 5 days a week for 3 hours at a time. Is it an all or nothing deal? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SKL Posted November 5, 2015 Share Posted November 5, 2015 I thought hiring a nanny whose first language was Spanish would help my kids learn Spanish, but it didn't work out that way. The nanny would not do immersion. The kids refused to interact with her in Spanish, so she just used broken English, and my kids would hardly interact with her in English either. By the way, she too had been a teacher in her home country, so I had high hopes, but it didn't work out as planned. Maybe you'll have better luck. :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rebbyribs Posted November 5, 2015 Share Posted November 5, 2015 Do you speak the language some? If you've already learned a bit and are willing to speak it, that seems like it would give a better chance of success. I would think it was fair to pay the going rate for a babysitter (varies widely by area) for 2 hours and not pay for the 3rd hour if you are providing dinner and taking care of the cleanup. Will your husband be around in the evenings, and how does he feel about it? (Mine appreciates company from time to time but usually wants a chance to wind down after work.) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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