Anonymous
04/21/2016 15:33
Subject: How important is English speaking skills in a nanny?
I think the biggest consideration is whether you can communicate effectively with the nanny and whether the nanny can communicate with teachers, doctors, other kids parents, contractors who need to access your home and things like that. I would worry less about the medicine thing pps seem to hyperbolic about...the instructions are written in a graph with numbers. An idiot could figure it out.
Anonymous
04/21/2016 15:06
Subject: How important is English speaking skills in a nanny?
My OP is not about the pros and cons of learning a second language. Our baby is exposed to two languages at home already, later a third (my or my husband's third language) when old enough to attend toddler classes. But we don't expect to find a nanny who speaks one of our other languages and as I find most nannies are not native English speakers, I am concerned about the nanny speaking their non-fluent English to our child. The plurality of nannies I've met speak Spanish, which is not among our family's languages, and I think it might be too much to have our baby hear a fourth language...
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:Anyone wondering why so many children are speech delayed?
Think about it.
We are working in Eastern Europe and have a live-in Russian nanny; she has very, very limited English, and took me seriously when I told her at the start that she should "force" everyone to speak Russian. Now we ALL speak Russian, thanks to her. She reads to my toddler in Russian, and interestingly, the toddler (who is NOT speech delayed) understands that we speak to Valentina in Russian and Mommy and Daddy in English: the toddler seems to have equivalent English and Russian vocabularies, and she switches from one language to the other depending on whether she is speaking to the nanny of her parents. I love this. We inherited the nanny from another American couple, who had her for 7 years: she taught their twins fluent Russian, and also had them reading and writing in Russian with some old schoolbooks she got from her grandkids' school. I feel it is such a gift to have this experience, and I don't care AT ALL that she can't really speak English. The gift of a second language can only truly be given to a very young child (if you desire fluency), and if/when we go home, I am already plotting ways to keep up the kids' Russian.
Anonymous
04/21/2016 14:59
Subject: How important is English speaking skills in a nanny?
PP, it's so funny you should bring this up. We are a Russo-Arab family in the Washington area. My DH and I decided it was a priority to retain heritage languages for our children. So we've had a Russian live-in nanny with both our children whose English skills were quite limited. We explained that we sought out someone like her specifically to instill and preserve the Russian language for the children, and that she is to speak Russian with the children at all times. We don't care that her English is limited; she won't be speaking it with the kids. So it depends on what your goals are with the caregivers. Ours was to preserve the heritage language, and we selected an educated, intelligent person who speaks grammatically correct, rich Russian. Her English abilities are irrelevant.
Anonymous
04/21/2016 13:02
Subject: How important is English speaking skills in a nanny?
Anonymous wrote:Anyone wondering why so many children are speech delayed?
Think about it.
We are working in Eastern Europe and have a live-in Russian nanny; she has very, very limited English, and took me seriously when I told her at the start that she should "force" everyone to speak Russian. Now we ALL speak Russian, thanks to her. She reads to my toddler in Russian, and interestingly, the toddler (who is NOT speech delayed) understands that we speak to Valentina in Russian and Mommy and Daddy in English: the toddler seems to have equivalent English and Russian vocabularies, and she switches from one language to the other depending on whether she is speaking to the nanny of her parents. I love this. We inherited the nanny from another American couple, who had her for 7 years: she taught their twins fluent Russian, and also had them reading and writing in Russian with some old schoolbooks she got from her grandkids' school. I feel it is such a gift to have this experience, and I don't care AT ALL that she can't really speak English. The gift of a second language can only truly be given to a very young child (if you desire fluency), and if/when we go home, I am already plotting ways to keep up the kids' Russian.
Anonymous
04/21/2016 08:35
Subject: How important is English speaking skills in a nanny?
Anyone wondering why so many children are speech delayed?
Think about it.
Think about it.
Anonymous
04/21/2016 07:45
Subject: How important is English speaking skills in a nanny?
Anonymous wrote:Funny you mentioned the nanny who refers to glass containers as crystal!
My own nanny calls ALL of our plastic containers with lids (Rubbermaid, Ziplock) Tupperware.
It isn't.
I personally would want someone who spoke English fluently in case something happened to my child, her or the house.
If anything else, the peace of mind would be my primary reason.
Uh, I am a native english speaker and I do this. I also call all adhesive bandages "Band-aids" and call all disposable plastic zippered pouched "ziplocs."
Anonymous
04/21/2016 07:20
Subject: How important is English speaking skills in a nanny?
mAnonymous wrote:I have a young infant and will be looking for a nanny as my maternity leave runs out. I've noticed that most of my friends' nannies do not speak English well even though that is the only language with which they communicate with the child. My guess is it doesn't really matter when they are a baby or once they are in school, but how about in between? I.e., after the age of one when they are acquiring language until they enter school. And how well should they speak it? One friend's nanny can communicate with the kids, but that's about it, i.e., no richness in vocabulary, limited conversation. My sister's son's nanny spent part of her childhood in the States so speaks English very fluidly, but with about an elementary-level vocabulary and regularly uses the incorrect word. For example, she referred to glass food storage containers (the GlassLock ones) as crystal, that sort of thing. Does it all even out once the child is in school? Or should I focus on native English speaking nannies?
The parents have to teach your child first in correct way ,after come the nanny...
Anonymous
04/20/2016 23:18
Subject: How important is English speaking skills in a nanny?
Anonymous wrote:Our manny is bilingual. But his English is as good as mine. I would not hire someone who was not fluent in language - I don't want them mistaking a tablespoon for a teaspoon when reading medication instructions, for example.
This.
Truly a life or death matter.
Anonymous
04/20/2016 23:17
Subject: How important is English speaking skills in a nanny?
Funny you mentioned the nanny who refers to glass containers as crystal!
My own nanny calls ALL of our plastic containers with lids (Rubbermaid, Ziplock) Tupperware.
It isn't.
I personally would want someone who spoke English fluently in case something happened to my child, her or the house.
If anything else, the peace of mind would be my primary reason.
My own nanny calls ALL of our plastic containers with lids (Rubbermaid, Ziplock) Tupperware.
It isn't.
I personally would want someone who spoke English fluently in case something happened to my child, her or the house.
If anything else, the peace of mind would be my primary reason.
Anonymous
04/20/2016 17:59
Subject: How important is English speaking skills in a nanny?
Our manny is bilingual. But his English is as good as mine. I would not hire someone who was not fluent in language - I don't want them mistaking a tablespoon for a teaspoon when reading medication instructions, for example.
Anonymous
04/20/2016 16:16
Subject: How important is English speaking skills in a nanny?
We had a spanish speaking nanny for our twins for the first 3.5 years of their lives. Her english was passable but far from good.
The kids did not seem hampered in their verbal development at all, and they speak some spanish (and understand a LOT), which I think is very helpful in terms of brain plasticity.
When the kids were going to be going to preschool we made a change. The nanny was fine for communicating primarily with us, but being the liaison with school staff would not have worked well (and there were some other factors.)
It is a relief to be able to communicate more clearly with our current nanny, but we also miss many things about our first nanny and the kids' spanish skills are definitely declining.
The kids did not seem hampered in their verbal development at all, and they speak some spanish (and understand a LOT), which I think is very helpful in terms of brain plasticity.
When the kids were going to be going to preschool we made a change. The nanny was fine for communicating primarily with us, but being the liaison with school staff would not have worked well (and there were some other factors.)
It is a relief to be able to communicate more clearly with our current nanny, but we also miss many things about our first nanny and the kids' spanish skills are definitely declining.
Anonymous
04/20/2016 15:06
Subject: How important is English speaking skills in a nanny?
If you plan to keep the nanny long term, having your child hear and use two languages could be beneficial. Personally, I am very focused on learning and using proper English, so it is a decision you have to make. There will obviously be many challenges and you'll have to decide if the lower cost is worth it to you. I would gladly accept a native Spanish speaker, but not one without the ability to communicate proficiently in English.
Anonymous
04/20/2016 15:03
Subject: How important is English speaking skills in a nanny?
I recently worked for about six weeks with a family with 18 mo old twins cared for by someone with limited English. The kids didn't really speak a lot of English and the nanny never took them out of the house to socialize. She was older and lived with them because the parents jobs had long sporadic hours. My job was to get them out and socialized and speak English to them. The nanny m ew a little English and I know a little Spanish but it made communicating with her really difficult. My two cents is bilingual nannies are great and I wish all Americans had the opportunity to learn another language from a very early age, but if they aren't learning their first language well that isn't a very good start in life; they're basically foreigners in their own land. That said, kids are resilient and malleable so I'm sure they'll learn its just harder is all. Harder on everyone, esp of the nanny quits and a new one fluent in English comes in and can't communicate with them. If anything if have the limited English nanny speak the foreign language rather than broken English.
Anonymous
04/20/2016 14:52
Subject: Re:How important is English speaking skills in a nanny?
I should have said "How important are..." not "...is." OOPS 
Anonymous
04/20/2016 14:39
Subject: How important is English speaking skills in a nanny?
I have a young infant and will be looking for a nanny as my maternity leave runs out. I've noticed that most of my friends' nannies do not speak English well even though that is the only language with which they communicate with the child. My guess is it doesn't really matter when they are a baby or once they are in school, but how about in between? I.e., after the age of one when they are acquiring language until they enter school. And how well should they speak it? One friend's nanny can communicate with the kids, but that's about it, i.e., no richness in vocabulary, limited conversation. My sister's son's nanny spent part of her childhood in the States so speaks English very fluidly, but with about an elementary-level vocabulary and regularly uses the incorrect word. For example, she referred to glass food storage containers (the GlassLock ones) as crystal, that sort of thing. Does it all even out once the child is in school? Or should I focus on native English speaking nannies?