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my name's rebecca. i doubt you're even mildly interested in the irrelevant aspects of my life, so i'll get to the point. i'm not a professional psychologist nor do i pretend to be, yet i'll try to give you advice based on the common sense that, unlike many others on here, i own ;]
advice
I'm 13/f, turning 14 in June. I've never really baby sat before, like as an actual job. But I'm good with kids, and I think the safety of a child is first priority, I love kids so I'd never want anything to happen to a child. Well, me and my friend decided that tomorrow we were going to put flyers around her neighborhood (full of little kids). But could anyone give me any advice? How do you actually get the job? Do you need to write up a little resume, or talk to the person before you babysit? And how much should I ask for? I really want to get a new iPod touch and some other things by the end of the summer hopefully if I start now. Any other tips for emergencies? What's a best way to get the child to calm down? What if I don't know what to do in a situation, do I call the parent or my own mom? I just want some pointers so that I can do the best job possible.
Aside from putting up flyers, another great way to get jobs is word of mouth. Have your mom mention to people that you babysit-- I got two jobs just because my mom mentioned it in passing. Also, if you have any younger siblings, see if you can babysit for their friends.
I've never heard of anybody writing up a resume-- normally they just ask you how old you are, if you've ever babysat before, how often you'll be free to babysit, etc. I've never had anybody really go into details.
I ask for $8-10 an hour, when I babysit for two kids. I suppose if I was only watching one kid, I'd ask for $6 or $7. Honestly though, with the family I babysit for, I didn't even give them a price. They just gave me money the first time I babysat, and I had no complaints so it's just been continuing at that charge.
Depending on how old the child is, it can be hard to get them to calm down. You really just need to suggest something else to do, but something calm and something you know they'll like. For example, I babysit for an eight year old boy (Alex) and whenever he gets riled up, I suggest that we go into his room and watch TV or play Nintendo or something. I dont usually need to be strict, but I hate when I do. Sometimes you just need to be firm; the parents understand.
It depends on the situation for whether you should call the parent or your mom. You really just need to use your best judgement. If it's something important that only the parents can answer, and you think it's something the parents would like to know about, call them. But if it's just a question on how to do something, don't bother them, call your own mom. The parents don't want to be bothered with their babysitter interrupting their night over whether their child is REALLY allowed to have ice cream for dessert or if he's making it up. But I'm sure they'd like to know if you, for example, can't find where his medicine is that he needs to take.
Good luck! The first time you babysit, you'll probably be nervous and it may be kind of awkward, not exactly knowing what to do. But it gets so much easier very quickly.
(Rating: 5) thanks!