How to Screen a Prospective Baby Sitter

No matter how good your prospective baby sitter's recommendations, you need to be sure he or she will fit your family's needs.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Address Books
• Reference Checks
• Pads Of Paper

1. Call the prospective baby sitter on the phone.

2. Let her know if a friend has recommended her so she knows you are a friend of a trusted client.

3. Ask about her experience and the ages of the children she is used to baby-sitting.

4. Determine the days and hours she is available and the fee she charges (or discuss what you are willing to pay). Find out if she has had any emergency or first-aid training.

5. Get a list of references, including names and phone numbers.

6. Call references. If references check out, invite the baby sitter to your home for 30 minutes to an hour.

7. See how she relates to your child(ren) and how they (and you) relate to her.

8. Hire the baby sitter if you are satisfied.

Tips & Warnings

• If you have a newborn, be especially careful to hire a baby sitter who has experience with small babies. Newborns have special needs that the average teenager may not be able to accommodate.
• Baby sitters recommended by friends often turn out to be the best sitters you can find.
• For inexpensive and reliable baby-sitting, consider swapping baby-sitting time with a trusted friend.

[vuld]

on 5/20/2009 If you are considering hiring a stranger then you need to attain as much information as you can prior to entrusting this person with your children. For less than $30 you can do a background on a person through several different websites. I find it a small investment for the safety of my children and if someone is hiding something they usually back out once I tell them what I'm doing.