A mother's helper is a kid who is too young to babysit. They entertain your child while you are elsewhere in the house. They are typically middle schoolers - 10-13 yr olds

Anonymous wrote:I use a young teenager for this type of thing. Does require more supervision but theyre thrilled for the money and the right teen is hard to find.

A teenager will be in class during the day, no?

Anonymous wrote:I agree with others that a college student is really the sweet spot here and would probably be exactly what you need (and would be cheaper too)

Not if you want reliable care. The he price is similar or higher, to make it worth their time.

I agree with others that a college student is really the sweet spot here and would probably be exactly what you need (and would be cheaper too)

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You can increase the number of hours and use the extra time to do something else besides teach.

I would do this but people are looking for 20 or more hours a week, which is more than twice what I was looking for. I've offered to go as high as 16 (two full work days), but still no dice. And that's even with my DD taking a 2 hour nap every afternoon, so they'd be getting paid simply to be home with her while she rests in the afternoon. I thought it would be perfect for a student who wanted study time and extra cash.

Do you live near a university (that's doing on campus classes?) I think unless your location is extremely convenient (like a few minutes walk) most people aren't going to want to make a trek for just a couple hours work.

Pre-covid, paying $25 an hour, we went through three college students in one semester. They were all unreliable - would just not show up.

I use a young teenager for this type of thing. Does require more supervision but theyre thrilled for the money and the right teen is hard to find.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:You can increase the number of hours and use the extra time to do something else besides teach.

I would do this but people are looking for 20 or more hours a week, which is more than twice what I was looking for. I've offered to go as high as 16 (two full work days), but still no dice. And that's even with my DD taking a 2 hour nap every afternoon, so they'd be getting paid simply to be home with her while she rests in the afternoon. I thought it would be perfect for a student who wanted study time and extra cash.

Do you live near a university (that's doing on campus classes?) I think unless your location is extremely convenient (like a few minutes walk) most people aren't going to want to make a trek for just a couple hours work.

It may not be the low hours but the actual times.

Full time nannies and sitters are getting $25/hour for 40+ hours right now. You want under 10 hours and want to pay less per hour. If you increase the hourly rate, you might have a chance, but you're more likely to find someone with 20+ hours AND a higher rate.

I have older kids but was running into similar issues - I tried all the usual online sources for a mother's helper and struck out everywhere.

We ended up hiring a neighborhood kid who is in college but learning from home, so has flexibility and extra time on his hands since he doesn't have anyone to socialize with! He is basically our extra afternoon driver. Do you know any families in your neighborhood with kids home from college?

Anonymous wrote:No. We’ve had no luck at all in spite of offering $30 an hour. Lots of applicants but all were taken before we even got to interview. We’re still looking.

BTW, “Mother’s Helper” is the wrong term. You’re looking for a tutor.

I mean, not really (OP here). Not really looking for someone to teach my DD, just a sitter. But I am willing to pay more to someone with some ECE background because I know how valuable that is and I want to pay people for what they are worth (I have an Ed degree).

Anonymous wrote:You can increase the number of hours and use the extra time to do something else besides teach.

I would do this but people are looking for 20 or more hours a week, which is more than twice what I was looking for. I've offered to go as high as 16 (two full work days), but still no dice. And that's even with my DD taking a 2 hour nap every afternoon, so they'd be getting paid simply to be home with her while she rests in the afternoon. I thought it would be perfect for a student who wanted study time and extra cash.

No. We’ve had no luck at all in spite of offering $30 an hour. Lots of applicants but all were taken before we even got to interview. We’re still looking.

BTW, “Mother’s Helper” is the wrong term. You’re looking for a tutor.

You can increase the number of hours and use the extra time to do something else besides teach.

I've been looking for someone to come by two mornings a week to help with my preschooler. I teach live online classes those mornings and need my child to be fully occupied while I'm working. She went to a forrest camp over the summer, which was perfect, but they aren't doing a winter session. Then my husband was able to temporarily change his work schedule and I had a break in classes. But they start up again in November and I still can't find someone to hire and am getting panicky. Everyone I talk to wants more hours. I don't think the rate isn't the issue (offering $22-30 depending on whether they have a teaching background and can do PK stuff with her), it's the low hours. And maybe the schedule? I can't do anything about the timing.

Anyone having luck with this? I've tried Urban Nanny, Care.com, QuadJobs, the neighborhood listserv, word of mouth... running out of ideas.