Parents should create a comprehensive list of nanny interview questions to find the best caregiver for their children. Questions should cover experience, training, expectations, temperament, and discipline. Nannies should have certifications, CPR, and driving licenses. Scenarios can be provided to gauge responses. Nannies should be professional and approachable and able to handle household chores.
Taking care of children is one of the most important and sometimes the most difficult jobs. Parents should create a comprehensive list of nanny interview questions as they try to find the best possible caregiver for their children. The interview should involve questions about experience, training, expectations and temperament. As parents go through their list of nanny interview questions, they should look for both verbal and non-verbal cues about each candidate’s suitability.
Many nannies go through comprehensive childcare training programs for licensing and bonding. A list of nanny interview questions should include requests for certifications and undergraduate degrees in nursing, safety, nutrition, and development. A nanny should also have cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) certification and be experienced in first aid. Many parents require their nannies to hold valid driver’s licenses and safe driving records. Additional training may be required if the nanny is to care for infants or children with special needs.
An experienced nanny often has tools and skills that she learned from previous employment. Potential nannies should be able to describe why they decided to become nannies, how long they have been caring for children, and why they left previous posts. The experiential nanny interview questions may ask for descriptions of past problems, solutions, and successes. For example, a parent might ask, “In your past experience as a nanny, how have you dealt with sibling rivalry?”
Discipline is a major concern for many parents. Nanny interview questions might ask how potential nannies prefer to treat disciples, how they were disciplined as children, and how they discipline their own children. Parents can describe how they handle rewards and punishments with their children to make sure future nannies can meet those guidelines.
Parents can provide short scenarios along with the nanny interview questions to gauge the interviewees’ responses. A nanny should be able to describe the typical activities and schedules she would provide for the children. If the nanny will be hired to take care of a newborn, she may ask him how to take care of a crying baby. For toddlers, it’s also important to assess the prospective nanny’s skills and techniques for toilet training and early social development. Parents can describe an emergency situation and ask for details about how potential nannies might respond.
The way the future nanny presents herself is almost as telling as the answers to the nanny’s interview questions. Nannies should come across as professional, yet approachable. They should feel comfortable interacting with the children who would be in their care. Nannies serve as adult role models for the children in their care. Therefore, a nanny who exhibits behaviors that parents would not want their children to imitate would be a poor choice.
In many cases, nannies are responsible for household chores in addition to direct childcare. In between the nanny interview questions, parents can ask about cooking and nutrition skills. They can also ask prospective nannies what cleaning and home maintenance services they provide along with childcare. This is also a great opportunity to ask if the prospective nanny is open to further training and professional development programs.
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