If so, what do you want to know about them? What are the top 5 things you'd ask in an interview before they sat for your kids the very first time? (my kids' ages are 4 and 6)
I have always known the parents of my babysitters and the babysitters themselves. They tended to have younger sibs my kids ages. So no, I have never interviewed one. It is kind of a job I don't offer unless I know I want to hire you.
My rules were simple:
No talking on the phone
No friends can come with
I asked who they have babysat
If they know cpr
No punishing kids, Wait till mom or dad gets home to explain what went wrong.
A bedtime for the kids.
No answering the door.
They need to be able to drive, but cannot take my kids anywhere. The car is for babysitter to get to and from
Snacks will be provided
And for the very first time, I would have the sitter come over and spend time with my kids while I am home and get to know them. The second time I would only be gone an hour. The third time only an hour. The forth time I would go out for dinner and come home. My kids are way to precious to me not to have an extensive interview and get to know them. And I paid very well to make it worth it. I had the same babysitter for 12 years. It worked very well.
I ask about dicipline techniques.
Casual babysitters (the kind you only use once in a while) have always been family, friends or the kids of family/friends so no real reason to interview.
I suppose if it was a full time sitter I would check references and maybe ask for their facebook/twitter links? I think nowadays that tells you a LOT about a person's character, lol!
Top five questions:
what would you do...
if there's a fire?
if one of my kids is choking?
if a stranger comes to the door?
if your boyfriend wants to come over and hang out?
and the most important question,
what do like most about babysitting?
:)
How much experience do they have?
What would they do in an emergency? (Someone is breaking in, someone is injured, house is on fire, etc.)
Do they know basic first aid and CPR?
References?
I think it also depends on age... are you talking about an adult or a teenager? I would want to talk to the teen's parents if that's the case, to check out their responsibility level. For an adult, I would definitely want to check out references.
If your babysitter is an adult and you are checking references, the most important question is: Is this a safe person to leave my young children with? Unless you ask that directly, folks may not volunteer what you need to know.
All my best.
It also depends on what you are using the sitter for: nighttime while the kids are asleep, or during the day when they need interaction and attention? Nighttime it is all about safety and smart reactions. For daytime I like to ask about experience, what is your favorite age to work with? What was your biggest challenge? The answers give you good insight. It's also helpful to meet them, and have them meet the kids and see how they behave. I had one girl basically ignore my kids to talk to me, I did not hire her.
Wow. Someone said, "no disciplining until the parents get home". Huh? I can see no spanking--but you have crippled a sitter if they cannot discipline.
