As my fifth year of childcare approaches and I prepare for yet another long- and incredibly fun!- day of keeping children entertained, I thought I might share some ideas on the subject, thus this blog. :D To start at the very basics, a good babysitter is mature, trustworthy, patient, safety-conscious, organized, prepared, fun, and punctual... and of course likes kids! Here are some great ideas on actually getting a babysitting job for those just beginning!
1. Talk to your parents, uncles and aunts, friends, teachers, or anybody who may know somebody with or have kids who need babysitting! If you have an older sibling who babysits, ask them to enquire if the kids parents know anybody in need of a babysitter! Free advertising never hurt anybody! =)
2. If you're in a group or club or anything like that where parents with small children come. Talk with the parents and hint that you're old enough and interested in babysitting for them... if you are too shy to ask, just play with their kids! Often times parents will notice that you genuinly love working with kids and will hire you to babysit.
3. ADVERTISE!! make flyers and put them on doors or mailboxes of neighbors with small children. Be sure to list your age, phone number, past expirience, and rates. If you don't want to list a rate, you can always put "call for rates" on the bottom. Often times parents will either ask what you regularly charge or pay you depending on how good of a job you do. If the family has a pet or a child under 10 months old who will need more attention, you may want to charge a little extra for the trouble... it makes mopping up the puppy's "accident" a little more worthwhile! Even if you've never babysat officially before, your experience can even just be having watched a little brother or sister.
One more tip in closing is to sign up for a Red Cross babysitter's class. Even though you may never use baby CPR, it can never hurt to be prepared! Besides, the certification looks good on a flyer! Goodbye for now and good luck!
