Private, in-home childcare has always been a great option for parents who want their kids to be at home with personal attention. One of the best things about having a nanny or au pair is that they can take your kids to parks, museums, activities, the pool, and other places away from home. Exploration and socialization are great learning tools for young children, so it’s a benefit to have a childcare provider who can help them do that.
When seeking a nanny or au pair, many families simply require a driver’s license and clean driving record. They don’t often take a critical look at their caregiver’s actual driving experience. I would actually suggest taking time to verify your nanny’s defensive driving skills before she begins driving your children.
Driving Lessons are a Good Idea for All Drivers
Most first time drivers learn to drive with a parent or close relative. When you think about the difference in skill sets between doing and teaching, it should make you wonder how effective those lessons really are. Some high school students take a basic driver’s education course, but that involves textbook learning and is short on experiential learning. There is so much more to defensive driving than most people realize.
The driving coaches at our school are specially trained to teach the skills associated with safely handling a car. There is a lot going on behind the wheel for every driver! It’s important to learn the best habits the right way from the very start. But even if your driving lessons didn’t set you up entirely for success, it’s never too late to correct your habits and become a safe defensive driver.
If your nanny or au pair learned to drive the way most people do, she may be missing some vital safe driving skills. In particular, most first time drivers do not learn to drive with young children in the car. This alone presents a skills gap that anyone driving kids should consider. If your au pair is here from another country, there may be differences in our driving laws and customs that she needs to learn before she drives with passengers.
What are the Benefits of Defensive Driving Lessons for My Child’s Nanny?
You want your children to be cared for in a safe environment by someone who loves them and has their best interests for growth and development in mind. One way your caregiver can support your child’s safety is by going through a defensive driving course. The employer family can look at this as a benefit of employment. Both the family and the nanny gain peace of mind that a competent and skilled driver is transporting their children to parks, activities, and lessons. Additionally, the nanny gets special skills training that she can use on her résumé, which will give her an edge in seeking future employment.
It is important not to frame the scheduling of driving lessons for your nanny as an issue of not trusting her as a driver. Rather, this is an opportunity for her to enhance her existing skills and gain confidence in one aspect of her employment. Driving coaches are accustomed to working with drivers of varying abilities and experience. We treat all drivers with respect and take all of their existing experience into consideration. The lessons are geared towards improving skills and training on situations pertinent to the specific driver’s most common circumstances.
If you are interviewing nannies and au pairs who will drive your most precious cargo, consider adding a defensive driving skills package to your employment benefits. One more highly skilled safe driver on the road could make all the difference to your world. Contact us to learn more about our Driving Lessons, and how we gear them to specific job requirements like childcare.
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