As spring continues to bloom and the end of the school year gets closer and closer, many families anticipate new schedules and childcare challenges. Now is the time to plan for summertime childcare! Get started soon to avoid any gaps in your family’s schedule.
While au pairs are a great source of support during the school year routine, they are also hugely valuable during those summer months when your children are itching to get outdoors and are looking for fun to fill their days. Read on for just a few examples of what an au pair can do to make this summer the best one yet for you and your family.
If your children attend a daytime program like camp or a sports workshop, an au pair can make sure they get out the door on time with all the gear they need. Whether it’s to a day camp or sports practice, au pairs can wait for your children at the bus stop or drive to drop them off and pick them up.
If you have summer vacation plans, you can choose to have your au pair come be a part of the fun with your family! With an extra set of hands, getting kids packed and staying entertained in the car or on the plane is a breeze. Host mom Diana shared with us how her family’s au pair, Noemi, was a life-saver on their family day out together.
“Noemi went on several adventures with us this summer and even had the opportunity to captain a yacht,” says Diana. “At one point, she accompanied us on a 3-hour boat trip to watch the Chicago Air show from the water. While we all got massively sick from all the water traffic, Noemi stepped in and helped care for the kids!”
Even hot summer days that are spent at home and around town are turned into an adventure! One host mom in California, Dayna, explains how her family’s au pair Sandra made every day great with a variety of activities that they began to call “Sandra Camp.” “She taught them soccer in our backyard, started her own traditions and took them out for excursions around the Bay Area,” says Dayna.
Another host mom, Kristina in New Hampshire, loved the way that au pair Jenny was able to get her four young boys corralled “into the car and off to a state park. She’d lead them on these three-mile hikes through pretty rugged terrain while wearing the two-year-old in a backpack. Then she’d take them for a swim in a pond, have a picnic, and hike home. Bedtime had never been so quiet!”
It can seem like indoor time at home can too-often revolve around electronics’ screens, especially on a rainy or unbearably hot day. Not for the Ghosh family, though! Their au pair, Talita, arrived just one week before the start of summer vacation—so she had to think quickly to find activities to keep three kids busy since they have a no-screens policy during the day. Host mom Tricia from Texas saw her kids have fun while “arts and crafts became a favorite. They would sometimes walk to the park to play and eat lunch there. I continue to be impressed at the ease she has while getting the kids out the door with shoes on, lunches packed, and everything needed for the baby in the diaper bag!”
Another challenge of summer can be summer assignments for school. Your au pair can help your children with homework to make sure they don’t lose what they learned the previous year. They can also help your student stay on track throughout the summer so that the reading and math assignments aren’t all left until the last few weeks.
Ana, an au pair from Colombia, was able to help her host child practice Spanish between school years at a dual language school. Her host mom in Virginia, Rebecca, also loved that Ana prepared lessons for her daughter to refresh on other schoolwork over the summer.
And when school comes back in the fall, your au pair’s schedule can adjust according to the needs and new challenges of whatever the next school year will bring.