Guest Author - Holly Fox

Hiring a German au pair can be a solution to your child care needs and an opportunity to introduce your family to another culture and language. While the benefits are many, there are some potential sources of trouble. Follow these tips to get the most out of your au pair experience.

Be confident in your choice

If you’ve found an au pair over the internet and not through an agency, than the responsibility for making sure she’s the right fit for your family is yours. Be sure to talk to her on the phone and ask her about her experience, her reasons for becoming an au pair, her personal interests. If you sense this is a young woman looking for an easy way into your country, who won’t look after your children with the care you want, then you should not hire her. The ideal au pair has experience taking care of children the same age as your own and is excited about sharing her language and culture with them. It’s a good idea to sign her up for a first aid and CPR course when she arrives.

Make your expectations clear from the very beginning

Once your au pair has arrived, she should quickly get acquainted with the family as well as the home. If there are areas of the home you would like to keep off-limits, such as your bedroom or a bathroom, explain this politely. That said, the au pair should be provided with her own bedroom and bathroom, and the children should understand that this is her private space and should not be entered without permission.

The au pair’s responsibilities should be listed and a weekly schedule created. Include which meals you expect her to prepare for the children along with examples. If you limit your children’s sugar or fat consumption, or if there are food allergies, make this explicit from the beginning.

The weekly schedule should list beginning times and ending times, scheduled activities, and appointments. If you expect her to adhere to the schedule then you should be home and ready to take over at the agreed upon ending time.

Making room in your family for your au pair

Many au pairs are quite young and have never been so far away from home for so long. Depending on the size of the city you live in and her contact with people her own age, your au pair may feel isolated and lonely. Make sure she is signed up for English lessons or any fun course at your community college. Invite her to take part in family activities in the evenings and on the weekends, and make sure she feels comfortable hanging out with the family in the communal living areas. The important thing here is to differentiate between working and hanging out with the family. When you are present she should help out like any family member but you are the one in charge and should be the one responsible for you children.

Bringing the German language and culture into your home

If your children are attending a bilingual school or already speak some German they should have no problem adapting to having an au pair who only speaks German with them. If they are new to the language you will be surprised how flexible and open to new languages they are. The au pair should always speak German with the children, except in dangerous situations or if the child directly asks what a word means in English. Lots of pointing and demonstrating will go along way and children especially find singing and reading enjoyable, even in a language they hardly understand. Child development research has found that young children have a strong capacity for absorbing vocabulary, tones, and grammar. Providing them with a German-speaking au pair at an early age is giving them a priceless gift for their future. Years from now they will say “danke schoen” with perfect pronunciation.