Families with Children of Varying Ages: How Can an Au Pair Benefit You?

You know the benefits of hosting an au pair for infants and toddlers, school-aged children, and teenagers. But what if you have big kids and little kids at home? 

Hosting an au pair is a great child care assistance option for families with children of varying ages – here are a few reasons to consider: 

1. Meaningful connections

Unlike day care centers and other child care assistance options, when you host an au pair, all of your children get meaningful interactions with the same caregiver. Siblings have the chance to bond with their au pair and with each other, as a family. Bonus: Au pairs can make great mentors, giving older siblings a role model. 

2. Shared family experiences   

From toddlers to teens, your children will love making memories together with their au pair. Sharing experiences as a family – language learning, cooking, and cultural celebrations – means memorable stories that your children will talk about for years to come. 

3. More time for quality time 

When you’re juggling kids of varying age groups, quality time can be hard to find. By hosting an au pair, you’ll gain a teammate who can give you the opportunity to spend solo time with one of your children. Our current host families tell us that having an extra set of hands is a life-changer.   

4. With an au pair, the child care cost is per family – not per child  

Families with more than one child often find they can save significantly on child care costs by hosting an au pair. Unlike other child care options, the cost of hosting an au pair is the same whether you have one child or multiple children of varying ages.

5. Educational benefits for all ages

Hosting an au pair can help foster intellectual growth and cultural learning for children of all ages. One-on-one attention, like an au pair provides, can help stimulate young children’s language development. With older children and teenagers, au pairs can help with homework and encourage them to develop global skills and perspectives. 

Whether your child is 15 months old or 15 years old, or somewhere in between, Au Pair in America has a program to meet your family’s child care needs. We ensure that au pairs who will be caring for children under the age of two have at least 200 hours of documented experience with children under two years old.

Ready to enrich your children’s lives through cultural exchange?