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Hints for Success – Homesickness/Culture Shock

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Almost everyone experiences culture shock when they come to a completely new environment. Everything is different: the language, the food, and the people. 

Here are my Top 5 Tips for
Dealing with Homesickness

1. Make Friends – Don’t wait for other au pairs to reach out to you, reach out to them. There are other lots of new au pairs who are feeling the same way you are right now. Set a goal to reach out to a few of them each day. Some will respond and some will not. Don’t let that discourage you. No one will ever be mad at you for sending them a message to say hello or ask if they want to do something together. Make friends from various countries and you will also get a chance to practice your English skills together.

2. Stay in touch with your home country, but not too much. Skyping or talking on the phone every day with your family and/or friends back home normally makes homesickness worse. Try emailing instead and reduce the Skype and phone calls to once a week, until you feel stronger. It’s much harder seeing the faces and hearing the voices of those you miss.

3. Get out of the house (or your room specifically) – Go to cluster meetings, have coffee or movies with other au pairs, join a gym, go to the library, go for a walk, visit the mall, get a manicure, visit a museum. If someone invites you out, say “yes.” Also, don’t be afraid to do the inviting. If your host family invites you to do things with them, say “yes.” This will help you get to know each other and contribute to your overall happiness.

4. Realize that it definitely gets better – All au pairs experience homesickness and nearly all of them stay and have a successful year (some stay for two years.) So, it must get better, right? Once you get past the initial homesickness, most au pairs report how quickly the year goes by.

5. Make Plans – Create your own Au Pair Bucket List (places you want to go, new foods to try, new things to experience during your year in the U.S.) and start doing them now. Post on our cluster Facebook group to find others who may want to join you on your adventures.

Photo by:  Shimelle Laine (Flickr)

Au Pairs Celebrate the Cherry Blossoms in Washington DC

On April 6th the Baltimore and Annapolis clusters met in downtown DC and were given a private tour by the owner “Eddie” from DC by Foot.  Eddie treated our group to a wonderful educational tour of the various monuments on the National Mall to include the Washington Monument, the WWII Memorial, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and the Lincoln Memorial.  We learned some great facts to include that the term “Mall” does not mean a shopping mall but rather means “open space” and  the Lincoln Memorial takes after the Greek Parthenon which translates to “perfect unity.”   Lincoln was remembered in history as a great unifier of our country and the 36 pillars that adorn the Lincoln Memorial represent the 36 states that were part of the Union at the time.  Our group was able to see the first signs of the Cherry Blossoms (a gift from Japan) come to life throughout the city on a wonderful sunny day.  These delicate blossoms signify the beginning of spring!   Something we in the DC area have been looking forward to after a long cold winter.

Celebrate International Women's Day on March 8th

internationalwomensdayInternational Women’s Day is celebrated in 176 countries and allows women worldwide to connect, celebrate and honor women’s past, present, and future. On this day women will “Celebrate, Commit, and Connect.” They’ll celebrate like never before ~ connect as only women do ~ and commit to improve in 3 areas of their lives:
1. Personal ~ improve their personal health and well being, and their businesses as employees, business owners, entrepreneurs.
2. Family ~ help their families be healthier and prepare for the future right now.
3. Country ~ let their voices be heard: to speak up, to make positive changes in their communities/countries.

Au Pair in America is an organization fully committed to enriching the lives and minds of young women and this day is highly regarded within the organization.  Young women from all over the globe, ages 18 -26, come to America to live with an American family and learn about American culture. The Au Pair in America cultural exchange program provides a platform to really the change lives of the young women that participate. Fanny Carvajal-Delgado, one of our former au pairs from Costa Rica, has said “Working as an au pair with Au Pair in America is a life changing experience. It has changed my life, the way I value my family and friends, the way I see the world and the way I think about myself, in a positive way.  I will never be the same person! When I finished the program I was more mature, Independent and responsible.”

In recognition of International Women’s Day, below are some ways you can celebrate this day as well as National Women’s History month in your local community:

  • Register to vote
  • Attend an event promoting women’s health, equality or safety
  • Thank a woman who has been a positive influence in your life
  • Support a program that provides business training for women in developing countries
  • Make a donation that provides education for girls

To find for an International Women’s Day event in your area, go to www.internationalwomensday.com!

Taking the Kids to see the Holiday Lights in 2012

HolidayLightsCoverTake a break from the hustle and bustle of the busy holiday season.  This great website offers 50-plus great places to see the holiday lights in 2012.  Lights on the Bay outside of Annapolis are listed as Number 2!  It is a drive-through holiday light show at Sandy Point State Park along the Chesapeake Bay, where there are stationery and animated displays including a glowing lighthouse, Navy midshipmen, oysters and blue crabs.  Visit between November 19th and January 2nd.  If you are traveling out of town to visit with family and friends this website offers many other places to check out the holiday lights to get everyone into the spirit.  Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all!

Click HERE for 50+ Great Places to See Holiday Lights.

July 4th…Happy Birthday USA

Happy birthday america

On July 4, 1776, Americans claimed our independence from Britain and Democracy was born. Every day thousands leave their homeland to come to the “land of the free and the home of the brave” so they can begin their American Dream.

The United States is truly a diverse nation made up of dynamic people. Each year on July 4, Americans celebrate that freedom and independence with barbecues, picnics, and family gatherings. Through the Internet we are learning about and communicating with people of different nations, with different languages and different races throughout the world. Bringing the world closer with understanding and knowledge can only benefit all nations.

Au Pair in America is dedicated to cultural exchange and hopes all our host families and au pairs are celebrating this truly American holiday together!  Enjoy your barbeques, picnics, and all the fireworks!

Click  for a schedule of fireworks.

Educare Au Pairs available

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AU PAIR IN AMERICA & HOWARD COUNTY COMMUNITY COLLEGE worked together to create a special program that fulfills the requirements to be able to introduce EduCare to Howard County.  The program is open to all students, but will make it possible for EduCare companions to earn their required education!!

EduCare Regulations:

  • EduCare is only for families that require childcare before and after school.
  • EduCare au pairs may not be placed with families that have preschool children except if other, full-time childcare plans have been made.
  • The EduCare au pair may work no more than 10 hours per day, and a maximum of 30 hours per week.
  • Au pairs participating in the EduCare component receive 75 percent of the weekly rate paid to non-EduCare participants.
  • EduCare au pairs must complete a minimum of 12 hours of academic credit or its equivalent during the program year.
  • The host family is required to provide (up to) the first $1,000 toward the cost of the au pair’s required academic course work.

Host Family Comparative Fees

Au Pair

Standard Au Pair

EduCare Companion
Program Fee

$7,295.00

$6,095.00
Match Fee

400.00

400.00
Weekly Stipend*

195.75

146.81
Education

500.00

1000.00
Average per week**

347.00

274.00

*Based on the Federal minimum wage

** Not including education allowance. Including education, difference is $3,196

EduCare in America 2011 Arrival Dates

Tuesday, July 5                                 Monday, July 25

Monday, August 1                             Monday, August 15

Monday, December 5

Privacy and The Internet

fb twitter youtubeJust a reminder about how important it is to respect your host family’s privacy and not share personal details and information.  This applies to all kinds of situations, including: personal conversations, email and social websites.

For your own safety, it is a good idea to be careful what personal information you share about yourself as well. You should not be giving out information like your telephone number and address to people you don’t know.

Once you post something on the internet (even if you later delete it), it can show up elsewhere.  Unless you have specific permission from the host family, you should not post pictures of them, their children or their home on the internet.

If you have a blog or website where you post in your native language, remember there is translation software.  So, even if you say it in your native language, be sure it is not something you will regret.

Travel & Vacation reminders

With Memorial Day just passed and Fourth of July coming up next month, I wanted to remind everyone about program rules on holidays and vacations.

Holidays

  • Host families are NOT REQUIRED to give au pairs any specific holidays.
  • Each host family will make different arrangements on holidays, some au pairs will be off and others will be required to work.
  • Au pairs should NOT make plans for holidays without checking with your host family FIRST.

luggage malias

  • Au pair earns 2 weeks of paid vacation during the course of her year.
  • The host family can pick a week and the au pair can pick a week, if an agreement is not reached.
  • All vacation should be preplanned (at least 4 weeks in advance.)
  • All au pair’s friends and/or family visits/vacations should be pre-approved prior to purchasing a ticket.
  • If an au pair travels with their host family, it should be discussed UP FRONT whether this is the au pair’s vacation or if she is working.
  • If an au pair travels with the host family to work, the host family is required to pay for her transportation, lodging and meals.