ADVICE RATING |
  4.08 (Worth a try) from 5 votes (98 Visits) |
Summertime means lazy days, backyard cookouts, visits to the beach and a well-deserved break from school for the kids. But if you’re a working parent, the unstructured days of summer also mean that you scramble to find seasonal childcare. Summer childcare choices range from day camps, to teenage babysitters,
to favors from family. And more often than not, parents must piece together a patchwork of these solutions to guarantee care for your children all summer. Most families in California face this childcare dilemma every year. This summer many families are turning to a growing trend in childcare: hosting a summer au pair. With an au pair in the home, parents get to enjoy summer just as much as the kids!
The summer au pair program was designed for families with school-aged children. For many families, hosting a summer au pair is a way to bridge the gap between children’s soccer camps, Grandma’s house and play dates. Instead of bouncing back and forth between childcare options, hosting a summer au pair gives us the comfort of knowing that the kids are always with someone families know and trust, with the convenience of having someone to get them from one activity to the next.
Summer au pairs are between the ages of 18 and 26 and come from Poland, Germany, Austria, the Czech Republic, Sweden and Brazil. A summer au pair provides up to 45 hours of childcare per week in exchange for a weekly stipend and the opportunity to experience American culture by living with a local family. Cultural Care Au Pair works with the U.S. Department of State to authorize these qualified au pairs from abroad to reside in the United States on a shortened visa, allowing them to live with families for up to 16 weeks during the school break.
Last year my family enjoyed a stress free summer and my son had a blast with his au pair Jessica. They shared day trips to the beach, the zoo, the city and the park he even learned to speak some German while my husband and I worked carefree without the worries of what if…
In addition to the flexibility a summer au pair provides, the benefits of cultural exchange influenced my family to choose the au pair program over summer daycare or nannies. Summer au pairs open children’s eyes to the world beyond their reach—often, host children learn to sing Brazilian songs or know German children’s games. Although children are out of school and having fun during the summer, they are still learning about a different language, music and culture, and the lessons they learn from a summer au pair can last a lifetime.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
About the Author
Cheryl Weissbart is a local childcare coordinator for Cultural Care Au Pair in Morgan Hill, CA. She loves connecting California host families with au pairs from around the world to help families find flexible and affordable childcare. Cheryl welcomes your questions about the au pair program and can be reached at (408) 821-7990 or cherylccap@yahoo.com. For more information, please visit www.culturalcare.com.
(April 2008) (
