Yearly Archives: 2019

Back to School Planning

Back to school time is here. This can mean changes to the au pair schedule and possibly to the duties.  It is very important to communicate these changes to avoid problems.

Here is a list of topics to consider discussing:

  • Au pair’s work schedule
  • The children’s school and activity schedules
  • Where the children get dropped off and picked up and who will be doing this
  • What to do if a child is staying home sick, late to school, does not get off the bus (if they are supposed to)
  • Driving laws regarding stopping for school buses
  • How to tell if school has been canceled or delayed for bad weather
  • Add the au pair to your list of people allowed to pick up the kids from school and explain the process
  • What to pack for lunch
  • The routine after school (do they have free time before starting homework, what to give for a snack, any chores, where do they put their backpacks & lunchboxes)
  • How to communicate about what’s going on at school. Your Kids in Care logbook from Au Pair in America can be a great two-way communication tool for keeping track of schedules, afterschool activities and day to day info that needs to be transferred between host parents and au pair.
  • If your au pair will be the one going through the children’s backpack and helping with homework, consider designating an area for putting things that need to be read and/or signed by parents.

Here are some Printable Fill-in-the-Blank School Notes for parents. You can print these out and have them ready for times when the kids are absent, late, have an early dismissal or you need to give permission for something.

Check out Au Pair in America’s Pinterest School Tips and Ideas pinboard for things like organization ideas, back to school traditions, printable lunch box notes, and fun lunch recipes.

 

Mariner’s Game Day with Our Tribe

Au pairs gathered for our annual Mariner’s baseball game this past weekend.  It was a beautiful sunny day spent watching a very American past time in a city that the world is also enjoying.  Play ball!

Daniela from Brazil Wins Community Service Award for WA State

Absolutely deserved.  Daniela has been a leader in our Eastside WA cluster for her entire time on program.  She has shared her multicultural views in Global Awareness presentations in schools, worked hard as an au pair with her host family and host son and volunteered her free time teaching others to have the courage to use their voices using their English abilities.  Read Daniela’s own words in her winning letter about ELLA to APIA here:

https://www.aupairinamerica.com/communityservice/winners.asp

Hiking our Hearts Out on the No Name Trail

Symbolism abounds in our day together.  The counselor is lost.  Two au pairs lead the way with better hiking apps and we find ourselves on the No Name trail and have a time.  Our adventuous group stops along the way to count our gratitudes and eat some Seattle chocolate and ends our time by sharing what challenges us, but also what we are hopeful for.  Heard in conversations, “I’m grateful for the woman I am right now.”   Great final words for this Sunday.

Century Link Stadium Tour – May 2019

How many pictures can we take?  Ladies were looking great in the sunshine, in the press boxes and in the locker rooms at the Century Link stadium tour.  It was really fascinating to hear about the history of the spot where our Seattle Seahawks play and we had a fine time spending time with one another as 12s on a gorgeous day.

 

Hairnets on their Heads and Giving in their Hearts

Below is a gorgeous group of giving girls.  This past weekend was beautiful outside and here in Seattle, we wait for those sunny, winter days.  But this crew went inside and for their precious time off, helped pack thousands of pounds of oats for those hungry around WA state at NW Harvest.  It is not the most popular of our cluster events, but it is a favorite for those who feel its true meaning and impact on the community this global village shares together for one or two years. In this picture are representatives from Bolivia, Mexico, Brazil, Austria, Germany, China, South Africa and Colombia helping out the US – one person at a time.

Big Kids Need Interaction Too

Just because a child is old enough to occupy themselves, doesn’t mean that they should be expected to do so the majority of the time.  Host families have a certain expectation of activity and involvement for their children. Get the kids engaged and active. You can be more fun than the TV or a video game.

 

Problem:
But, my kids don’t want to do anything but watch TV or play video games.

Solution:
Instead of saying,  “Would you like to (fill in the blank with any activity)?  The answer will often be, “No.”

Try this, “Now we are going to (fill in the blank with any activity.) or “Would you rather do  _____ or ______?”  Make sure both the choices are good options.
Your chances of co-operation are greatly increased. Even kids who are reluctant to try new things will usually get in the spirit of things and have fun, if you pick a good activity.

Problem:
I don’t know what to do with school age kids.

Solution:
Look for ideas online. Google “activities school age kids” or “activities tweens”. Below is a list of some ideas to get you started.

  • Cooking
  • Making things (check craft stores like Michael’s for kits and models that are age appropriate)
  • Going fun places (pottery painting, jewelry making, farms, museums, mini-golf, go-karts)
  • Sports (soccer, tennis, swimming, bicycling, roller skating, ice skating)
  • Let them teach you to do something they enjoy. Kids this age love being the expert.
  • Get outdoors and visit local parks.  You can even make a project of reviewing all the local parks (what kind of equipment they have, is there shade, water fountain?)  They can write this up and keep, so they remember which ones they want to go to again and which ones to skip in the future.
  • Let them help you search and plan some activities.
  • Check on the APIA Pinterest page and here on our cluster blog for ideas.
  • If you have a GPS, try taking them geocaching. Here is a website with all the details.

Note: Always get permission from your host parents before taking the kids places.

Photo: Killian77

Au Pairs Learn the Art of Giving Back – Gates Foundation – Feb 2019

Au pairs gathered from a few clusters to hear about some of the amazing things happening around the globe in the name of the Gates Foundation.  From the innovative design of green toilets competing for attention in Europe, to the stoves made on Vashon Island, WA, inspiration abounds.  Relying on data, the Gates family educates us about all the progress in the world with regard to disease and poverty.  There really is so much to be excited about as a world citizen.  We closed our time together talking about the APIA Explorer program and ways in which we might individually help our local community…enter the next cluster event stage right as we soon head to NW Harvest in March…

 

Privacy & Personal Information Online

We live in a time of constant sharing through social media. We often share pictures, plans of somewhere we are going or rants about problems, without thinking much about who will see it and what could be the consequences.

Before clicking “post”, stop to think:

  • Am I violating someone’s privacy?
  • Am I sharing personal info. that could put me in danger?
  • Would I want my current or a future employer to see this?

This will help protect your privacy and safety as well as that of your host family. It is important 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 give out information like your telephone number and address to people you don’t know. Safer to meet a new friend in a public place, than to give them your address before knowing them.

Once you post something on the internet (even if you later delete it), it can show up elsewhere.  Unless you have specific permission from your host family, you should never 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 that might be misinterpreted in translation or something you will regret saying.

UW Women’s Basketball Has Hundreds of Au Pair Fans

Nothing better than the power of a strong woman!  We were 110 au pairs strong from around the globe watching these young UW college basketball athletes.  Our joint cluster event was an inspirational success this January.  Go Huskies!  http://gohuskies.com/index.aspx?path=wbball