WHAT TO LOOK FOR (AND PAY!) FOR A QUALIFIED BABYSITTER

It’s time for a night out and you’re looking for a babysitter to watch your kiddos. Where do you start? What should you expect? And what in the world do you pay a babysitter nowadays? We polled some of our own Peaceful Valley team members who babysit on the side to get your answers. Here you go!

For starters, the majority of our Assistants at PVMA love to babysit on the side. This is a great opportunity for you as a parent because you and your child have already built a great relationship with the adults in your class/school! They spend several hours a week caring for your child, understand their personality inside and out, and know what makes them tick. In addition, because they work at PVMA, you know that their CPR and First Aid certifications are up-to-date, they have passed a thorough background check, and have also gone through additional safety training such as SIDS and Shaken Baby Syndrome.

Another benefit of using Teachers from PVMA is that their schedule typically follows that of your child. This means that on some of the days school is closed, or even on the very rare snow day, they are typically free to babysit for those who need it. The exception to this is on our in-service days when all staff are required to be present at school to clean, learn, re-set classrooms, and get the school shining for your children.

What can you expect from a babysitter? Their main job is always to keep your children safe. Next, of course, is to care for your children, whatever this means for you. To some parents babysitter nights include movies, pizza, and popcorn while other parents would prefer their children be engaged without screens. As long as your expectations are communicated to your babysitter, they should be more than happy to accommodate.  Because staff at our school are trained in positive discipline and the Montessori method, you can expect that they will carry these trainings into your home when working with your child.  Additionally, you can expect your babysitter to clean up the area they played in and clean any dishes that were used when babysitting your child. If you know there will be a lot of downtime when your child is sleeping and want them to do any other cleaning in the house, that would typically be extra.

So what is the going rate for babysitters these days? It all depends on experience. You could probably get a high schooler to babysit for between $12-$14 an hour. When it comes to more experienced and trained adults, like those at  PVMA, we asked around and typically heard rates between $15-$17/hour for one child and $17-$20/hour for more children. For more regular babysitting or longer days, you might be at the lower end of those rates. For last minute babysitting, at the higher end. In the end, these are always just suggestions. It is important to communicate with your babysitter to ask what they typically charge other families and go from there. Most babysitters are always willing to work with the families they babysit for so keep that in mind as you arrange care.

We hope this helps as you plan your next date night. Enjoy!