7 Characteristics of a Great Nanny
When you have decided to hire a nanny, the person you will employ might be spending a significant amount of time helping you raise your children. In some cases, the nanny might be the most important caregiver in your child’s formative years and the biggest influence on your children’s overall development. Therefore you want to ensure that you get the best person for the job that has the characteristics of a great nanny. Below are some that in our experience are the most important.
Characteristics of a great nanny:
Love of children –the genuine love of children comes naturally to some people. Great nannies have a passion for working with kids and for them, it’s a vocation and not just a job. They love teaching children, engaging them in creative and fun activities and games and just being around them and seeing them thrive.
Patience – is one of the most important attributes for anyone working with kids. They say that ‘patience is a virtue’, and this couldn’t be more true for nannies. Dealing with children can be tricky so being able to cope in a calm manner in stressful situations, during toddler tantrums, and disagreements is a must. The best nannies have the natural ability to tackle these situations in a composed way and communicate well with the kids.
Attitude – where there is a will there is a way. A great nanny has a positive can do attitude towards her duties and will find a way to do things and get a hard job done. They are positive, willing and eager to say yes. Generally, nannies with a can do attitude are more diligent and get things done with enthusiasm and a big smile on their faces. They are a real gem and hard to find.
Communication skills – being bubbly and playful is important when working with kids. Communication and language are prime areas of development for younger children and the nanny should be a good role model in language skills. Strong verbal communication is also key to liaising with parents about the specific needs of their children. A great nanny can pretend and play imaginatively, teach some rudimentary literacy and numeracy skills, and understanding of the world to younger kids and support homework with school aged children. Some nannies are typically hired to help with the teaching of a second language to the children.
Punctuality and being reliable – many parents hire a nanny so that they can work themselves and they need to know that their nanny will come on time and to work each day. If the nanny is late or doesn’t turn up the parents can’t fulfil their obligations. Parents need someone extremely reliable. Many nannies will drop and pick up children from school or schools and after school activities, juggle busy schedules therefore must be punctual and have excellent time management skills.
Understanding child’s development – Knowledge of child development can enable nannies to better support their progress. This is especially true for those working with younger kids because good early childhood development can have a direct positive impact on their learning years. Great nannies can encourage, find resources and set up activities to support children’s growth.
Common sense and safety awareness - are important qualities every nanny should have. Parents want to know that their child is in safe hands. A great nanny has good common sense and can make the best decisions based on good instincts, experience and sound judgement that are in the children’s best interests.
If you are looking for a great nanny we have many high quality candidates we can recommend so please do not hesitate to contact us.