Job #1

After a long time of looking any kind of job I could get my hands on I finally had an interview with a family with 3 little girls. They wanted to have a native English speaking spend 4 hours a day with them to teach the language while doing their day to day routine. I thought it would be really nice to have something that is regular and fun.

The girls were really sweet and the mother is fluent in English and super nice. The interview went well. I arrived at their place in a really nice area of the city and the girls were colouring at the table in their garden. Although they live in an apartment building with other people, the garden is only for them. This is rare in Paris. It was beautiful!

The next day the mother asked me to come back and have a trial go at things. I went with the nanny to the girl's school to pick them up. Then we took them to the park, came home and did the usual things 3 and 4 year olds do. When the mother returned from work she offered me the job after talking with the nanny. I was so relieved. I guess the mother wanted the nanny to decide if she thought I'd work well with them. Since I'd be with her much more than I'd be with the mother it was important that she liked me.

Later, I found out that not only do they have a nanny and an English teacher, but also a cleaning lady and a weekend nanny when they're at their grandmother's place. They're also looking for a German girl to teach them on Wednesdays when they don't go to school. It took me 5 days before I saw their father. I can't help but worry for them. Yes, it's nice that they have all these care takers to raise them well and help with their education etc, but kids need their parents. I see that when mom or dad gets home they go crazy to get their attention. When they don't get it they throw a fit. It's not my job to tell them how to raise their children, but it sure does make me think about how I would do things if I ever have kids. It also makes me thankful for the way I was raised. Sure, we weren't rich and we didn't have everything we wanted, but we did have our parents and as far as I can see that's much more important.

I guess the only thing that I can do is show these little girls my love as best as I can. I'll let them know how special and important they are.

It's amazing how language develops in young children. By simply talking to them the way I would a Canadian child they are picking up the language without much effort. It's so awesome when we walk down the street and they ask me "C'est quoi 'fenetre' en Anglais?" Window, I say. Window, they repeat. "C'est quoi 'fille' en Anglais?" Girl, I say. Girl, they repeat. Of course they have their moments when they don't want anything to do with English or even me for that matter, but when they're ready to learn it's really fun.

This has also been a time for me to realize just how much French I do know. Often I feel like I've been studying this language for so long and I've tried so hard and I'm still no where near where I should be at this point. But then I'm able to understand what is being said in the house. The nanny only speaks to the girls in French, so I'm picking up new vocabulary everyday! It's fantastic. Most of the time the girls speak to me in French, and since I understand what they're saying I can respond appropriately in English.

I know that I have to get tougher with them though. I hate yelling at kids. I hate telling anyone what to do, even when it's my job. But I know that if I don't they're not going to have any respect and they'll never listen to a thing I say. This job may sound pretty easy, but in many ways I'm being challenged more than I ever have before. It's a new experience. I'm quite thankful for it.