Is a French nanny the right fit for your family?

 

If you’re considering hiring a nanny, you’ll no doubt be looking forward to the myriad benefits of this childcare solution, from the consistency, flexibility and peace of mind it can provide to the educational opportunities afforded.

 

What’s more, having this help is more cost-effective than you may have realised.

At the same time, nannies can offer unique, specialist skills that you don’t always get with the alternatives – such as speaking more than one language. So taking on a nanny is an excellent way of meeting your family’s specific requirements.

 

And whether you’re looking for a French nanny in London or anything else, you’ll be keen for them
to be the perfect fit for your household, so that they become a seamless part of your home life.

 

Here are some things to bear in mind to ensure that happens:

 

• From the outset, consider why you want a French-speaking nanny to join your household – that way, you’re most likely to feel the benefit of having them. Is it because you or your partner is French and you want your kids to grow up bilingual, for example? Or do you just want them to get a head start on language learning?
• Equally, be very clear on what you need – do you prize the French language as your top priority above all else? Are there any other skills you’re prepared to sacrifice as long as your childcare professional is a native speaker?
• Have you spoken to your children to ensure they’re happy with being immersed in practising French at home every day? Ask them for feedback once your nanny has been with you a while, to find out how they feel and to be very sure they’re happy with the arrangement.
• Notice whether the prospective nanny speaks French to your child at the first meeting and encourages them to respond. Equally, you’ll be able to tell very quickly once the employee starts working whether your child’s level of language is improving, and whether they’ve become more willing to talk to you in French, and speak more of it to a higher level with a wider vocabulary than they did previously.
• With the language learning, as ever it pays to be clear on your expectations. Is the employee to speak French to your children all the time? If not, how much time will they spend speaking in English or any other language? Are you expecting grammar tuition or are you more interested in having constant conversations with a native speaker to encourage fluency?
• One obvious solution is to have a trial run to see how both you and the nanny get on and to
  assess whether her or she fits into your family’s routine, before committing to a permanent
  decision. You’ll clearly have your own approach to parenting, discipline, childcare practices and so on. So you’ll have to ask some very specific questions at interview stage and have a very open conversation to ensure alignment on all of these things. Your nanny also needs to have the sort of personality that would suit your child and help bring out the best in them.
• And this is where a nanny agency can come into its own, with access to huge databases of potential
  staff members which they can trawl to identify the perfect match.

Talk to French Nanny London

As our name suggests, at French Nanny London we specialise in pairing families in the capital with
trusted, impeccably qualified and experienced multilingual or French-speaking nannies, plus other
home-staff professionals. We know everyone we recommend personally, offer highly tailored
solutions and are ideally placed to find solutions quickly. Finally, we’re passionate about the huge
benefits of exposure to more than one language. Get in touch today and start the hunt for the perfect fit for your family!