Taya

My Summary

My Experience

I worked in a preschool for 6 months and have experience with children ranging from 18 months to 5 years old. I have previous babysitter experience too. I have fetched children from school, walked them home, played with them, prepared food etc. As well as tasks such as potty training, and helping children progress from the potty to the toilet. I taught the children about germs, and the importance of washing their hands, and how to stop the spread of germs. I cleaned the preschool, as well as assisting the children in cleaning up after themselves, and keeping the play area tidy. Of course, I played with the kids. That was my favourite part. We played imaginative games, like pretending we were superheroes, pirates, princesses, families, animals etc. These types of games are fun, but also benefit the children's imaginations and creativity. We would dress up, play cars, build puzzles, make things out of playdough, dance, sing songs, say nursery rhymes, read stories, play with musical instruments, play in the sandpit, play with water, play on the climbing frames, swing, ride bikes, and a lot more. Play is so important and it is vital in healthy development. This is how they development fine motor skills, core strength, hand-eye coordination, and skills like cooperative play, listening, confidence and overall fun. I love to actually get involved in the game, and not just watch them play. The children referred to me as their 'friend,' not as their teacher, and I loved this. I do not see adults as superior to children, only as having more experience in life. I will therefore treat them with the same repect I would an adult. I helped with snacktime, which consisted of teaching them how to eat with a spoon, throwing away their food wrappers, feeding some of the younger children, and how to listen to their bodies and fullness cues. We did naptime, and this was a very nurturing activity and didn't just consist of us laying them down and leaving them to sleep. We would sit next to them, and rub their backs while playing relaxing music, and wouldn't leave until each child was asleep. This helps the child see naptime as a positive thing, and not a time where they would be abadoned, and left to lie for an hour if they couldn't fall asleep. Conflict resolution was also an everyday task we would have to do. It was important to solve conflict in a gentle way, where each child felt they were being heard and understood. When dealing with conflict or discipline, I like to view the end goal, which is to help the child to understand the effect their actions have on others, and why we shouldn't perform behaviours that are going to hurt others' feelings. The goal is for them to learn, and want to solve conflict, and not just avoid the bad behaviour because they don't want to get into trouble. I would encourage them to try and resolve arguments themselves while facilitating the conversation between the children. If they were overwhelmed and emotional, I would bring them back to a calm place, where they could calm down, and talk to me one-on-one, and then re-enter the situation where we would talk to each party involved in the conflict, and collectively try to find a solution.

My Qualifications

I do not have any formal qualifications. I have the equivalent of A-levels, as I schooled in South Africa.

My Availability

I am a student, so part time will work best for me. I have lectures on a monday morning from 10am-3:30pm, on a tuesday from 1pm-4pm and Thursday from 12pm-6pm. Evenings I am free. I am available to work weekends.

My Fees

• Babysitting from £13.00 per hour

Depending on the amount of work, I would charge upwards of £13 per hour.