How important is it to you to have a smart nanny?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:High IQ doesn't always equate to great problem solving skills as it relates to children.

As PPS, have pointed out to you it is possible to reuest IQ scores when hiring a nanny.

It is also possible that the things you are complaining about have little to with the nanny's actual intelligence.

All in all, maybe you should refine your hiring process. If in eight years you haven't found a nanny you are 100% satisfied with odds are your methods for hiring are the issue.
Maybe you should make it clear during your interviewing process, that beyond paying you want zero involvement with the nanny.

Believe me, there are nannies that can and will take total charge and require little to no input from you.

IMO if your biggest complaint about your nanny is that she wants to know all the household rules you should consider yourself lucky. Browse the boards, and you will find employers with real issues like nannies ignoring the kids and not properly harnessing them in car seats.

OP here. You're right, high IQ doesn't always equate to great skills related to kids. Neither does low to average IQ. Skills related to children are something we have to look for in any nanny candidate; but the ability to use intelligence and apply those skills is what I'm looking for.

As for refining our hiring process, you must not have read my original post very carefully. We've had a couple of truly excellent nannies, the best and smartest being a woman who had only completed high school. Here's our past nanny history - feel free to critique:
Nanny 1: 12 months, was wonderful, we moved.
Nanny 2: 9 months, was wonderful, my schedule changed; recommended her to a friend, she continued to sit for us.
Nanny 3(A): 4+ years, was wonderful, she got married and changed careers.
Nanny 4: 6 months; nice enough, turned out to have no common sense and made bad decisions.
Nanny 3(B): nanny 3 returned, stayed about 6 months until her new school classes started (related to her new career)
Nanny 5: 7+ months; absolutely wonderful, my dream nanny; she left when she and her boyfriend moved to a new city. We've visited them. It was a mutual sobfest when she left and we still keep in touch. My dream nanny.
Nanny 6: Current nanny; 6 months so far.

Nannies 1, 2, 3 and 5 were all great; of those, Nannies 2 and 5 were truly excellent (with Nanny 5 being the best of the bunch). Nanny 4 we let go, so obviously not great. Nanny 6 is...fine. Not great. Not awful. Just...fine.

You're also mistaken that we want zero interaction with nanny or want nanny to take charge without direction. Nope, not the case at all. I'm very involved in my kids' lives - details, schedules, rules, plans, you name it. I give a lot of information and a lot of initial direction; but from that framework (which is a lot more detailed than "keep them alive, please"), I need a nanny who can take this framework and apply it to whatever may come up that day. There is no lack of clarity about household rules. For example: rule is that daughter must complete homework. I get phone calls asking if she should do her reading packet first or her science worksheets. I don't have time to create some sort of complex "if/then" flowchart for homework direction: "if daughter comes home with math and science, do science first; but if daughter comes home with math and reading, do reading first; or if daughter comes home with math, reading, AND science, do math first." I need a nanny who can evaluate the homework load, figure out what makes the most sense, and direct accordingly. This is just an example; there are a lot more things like that, of both greater and lesser significance.

I stand by my original statement: it's so nice to have a smart nanny. There's a world of difference. I've employed nannies of average intelligence and nannies who are clearly above average, and I have seen that it does make a difference in decision making, critical thinking, and plain old "getting it".

[Anonymous]

This time around, I really prioritized ability to problem-solve and work independently. I asked questions in the interview to find out how she would handle certain situations, and let her tell me what kinds of things she would do with the kids.

Our first nanny was very bright, but not a career nanny, and was not interested in applying her brightness to childcare. Our next two longer-term nannies were very sweet, but wanted to run absolutely everything by me, even after being told to just use their best judgement.

I love that our current nanny will figure out, on her own, what to do on a cold day, or find an activity all three children can do, or deal with a meltdown, etc., without needing help.

[Anonymous]

Personally, I would much rather have a nanny who truly loves being with children rather than one who is a member of MENSA.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Personally, I would much rather have a nanny who truly loves being with children rather than one who is a member of MENSA.

You get that these need not be mutually exclusive, right? It IS possible to both love children and be really smart.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Personally, I would much rather have a nanny who truly loves being with children rather than one who is a member of MENSA.

You get that these need not be mutually exclusive, right? It IS possible to both love children and be really smart.

+1. I don't get why some of you are so defensive here.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Personally, I would much rather have a nanny who truly loves being with children rather than one who is a member of MENSA.

You get that these need not be mutually exclusive, right? It IS possible to both love children and be really smart.

+1. I don't get why some of you are so defensive here.

NP but the implication of the thread, and many of its posts, is that a nanny is by default not smart. That's offensive, no? Choosing to make our lives about something other than our career doesn't mean there are not those of us who might rival the intelligence level of many of the MBs looking down their noses at us. I know, the thought is mind blowing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Personally, I would much rather have a nanny who truly loves being with children rather than one who is a member of MENSA.

You get that these need not be mutually exclusive, right? It IS possible to both love children and be really smart.

+1. I don't get why some of you are so defensive here.

NP but the implication of the thread, and many of its posts, is that a nanny is by default not smart. That's offensive, no? Choosing to make our lives about something other than our career doesn't mean there are not those of us who might rival the intelligence level of many of the MBs looking down their noses at us. I know, the thought is mind blowing.

The implication is not that nannies by default are not smart. The majority of the population is, by definition, average. The nanny population is likely the same - most are average, not as many are above average. It doesn't mean ALL nannies are average at best.

[Anonymous]

It's funny you post this because the majority of the high IQ folks I know couldn't find their way out of a paper bag.

As has been pointed out you can have a nanny with a high IQ and be great with kids and the day to day stuff.

However if you have hired a nanny that can't figure out age appropriate activities for your kids or needs you to plan activities for kids that's not IQ that is you hiring a lazy person to be your nanny.

[Anonymous]

I would say having a smart nanny is very important to me.
Who would want an idiot caring for their children?

I define smart beyond IQ scores, SAT scores, and degrees.

I have had had candidates share their scores and degree information with me.

I do not give much weight to those things. I rank things like experience, references, interaction with my children, and ability to meet their developmental needs above scores and degrees

Now if the woman I interview with meets all my other standards and happens to have a high IQ as well as an advanced degree that's a great bonus.

I will clarify that it will only impress me if that advanced degree is in education or child development.
I would immediately pass on someone if she told me her degree was in the maths or hard sciences.

I would pass on her even if she was great with my kids.

I would not want my daughters or my son being influenced by someone like that.
I don't want them thinking a woman can be talented in maths and sciences ,but she can only succeed and be happy caring for kids.

[Anonymous]

super high IQ making $45/hour as a nanny. RIGHT.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would say having a smart nanny is very important to me.
Who would want an idiot caring for their children?

I define smart beyond IQ scores, SAT scores, and degrees.

I have had had candidates share their scores and degree information with me.

I do not give much weight to those things. I rank things like experience, references, interaction with my children, and ability to meet their developmental needs above scores and degrees

Now if the woman I interview with meets all my other standards and happens to have a high IQ as well as an advanced degree that's a great bonus.

I will clarify that it will only impress me if that advanced degree is in education or child development.
I would immediately pass on someone if she told me her degree was in the maths or hard sciences.

I would pass on her even if she was great with my kids.

I would not want my daughters or my son being influenced by someone like that.
I don't want them thinking a woman can be talented in maths and sciences ,but she can only succeed and be happy caring for kids.

What the hell is wrong with you? Having a technical degree as a nanny makes you a bad person??? Have you considered that nannying for many young women is just a stop on the way to their lifelong careers? I have a technical degree, and I'm working as a nanny while going to grad school and bootstrapping my own business. Nannying gives me a lot of flexibility and free time, while allowing me to make really good money. You should really consider how your judgements and stereotypes are influencing your children, which is the more likely scenario.

[Anonymous]

she needs to have good judgement.

very few nannies in our neighborhood and truly able to help with real homework. if that's what you mean.

we are all typing up instructions, leaving things in writing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I love how people on this board think no one "smart" would be a nanny.

I'm a nanny with a high IQ. I also have a Master's Degree with a high GPA to go along with that fancy piece of paper I've worked in my high stress field and came back to nannying because I like it better and am happy overall.

My employers highly value education and were looking specifically for someone with at least a college degree. In addition, they wanted someone who was able to think on their feet and not need to be micromanaged. It's a great fit for both of us, so I'm very happy here.

FWIW, I have interviewed for a couple of nanny jobs that asked for my IQ score, SAT/ACT Scores, GPA and a writing sample. I've also seen quite a few ads that were looking for nanny who had an Ivy League Education and various other things, so you are not alone in wanting a intelligent nanny.

All that education and bragging, yet you still don't know proper grammar?

Sorry I'm too busy making $45 an hour with full benefits to worry about grammar on a website. Have a nice day!

Ha ha, I'm the one who posted this first response, but not the second one about making $45/hr. Posting from my phone and realize the grammar isn't great but don't have the patience to go back and edit. Quite honestly I don't care because this is DCUM. I knew one of you assholes who are the self proclaimed grammar police would point that out though, thanks for being so predictable.

[Anonymous]

OP, can you be more specific? Perhaps provide us some examples of some things these nannies did that showed their lack of intelligence??

Because as you must know, intelligence is a very subjective term in itself.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, can you be more specific? Perhaps provide us some examples of some things these nannies did that showed their lack of intelligence??

Because as you must know, intelligence is a very subjective term in itself.

OP here. It's hard to give specific examples; it's more a sense of seeing good judgement and thinking skills in action.

Homework: say it's Monday. If there is a silence project due at the end of the week and a math worksheet due tomorrow, which would you do first? If you know one kid in the family was sick two days ago, and now the other kid is really out of sorts, what might you be thinking about? If a kid has a sport that night should you plan to feed her dinner in advance, if you know bedtime is right after the practice ends? These aren't good examples as it's really hard to come up with day to day examples of when it's helpful to be able to apply some critical thinking; I think part of it is just the ability to GET it, figure it out, learn from the last time you asked, and put two and two together.

Our nanny is nice. She's just not that smart, and I find it exhausting.