[hamiriver]

Do you expect your babysitter to engage with your kids?
Or is it acceptable for them to sit on the lounge all night and text and phone friends- pretty much ignoring your kids. The kids range from 9 to 4 years old.
We have had a few babysitters lately who think this if perfectly ok. The one we had on Saturday night asked the kids a sum total of 2 questions and never left the couch!
The other funny thing is that when you ask them if they were well behaved, they always say yes!! I know my kids well enough to know that this is so not true...and the kids tell you the real story in any case anyway. One blabs and then the other two let it all out!!
And we are paying $20 per hour,

[~~HappyMummy~~]

I would expect them to engage with the kids then put them to bed with a story or whatever is needed. Plenty of time for them to sit on the lounge when the kids are asleep!

Try another one!

[Justaduck]

I'll admit there have been a few times where I have babysat a boy and his friend and all they wanted to do is play Xbox all night (parents were fine with that) so I was kinda stuck with not much to do, but apart from that I would wait til the kids were in bed til I used my phone.

Mostly the kids wanted to play something & I would play & interact with them.

About the well behaved thing...I would only mention something if it was worth mentioning...ie one boy in particular would be a bit defiant or sneaky, but it was easily controlled and managed, so I didn't mention to the parents every little hiccup in the night. Would only be if it was something big and I struggled with that I would mention that their kid was playing up.

[YodaTheWrinkledO...]

I would expect them to engage with the kids then put them to bed with a story or whatever is needed. Plenty of time for them to sit on the lounge when the kids are asleep!

Try another one!

This is what we expect from our babysitter and this is what she does. $20/hour, daycare worker, studying for her early childhood teaching degree. She brings along her study (during uni semester), a book to read or a DVD to watch, after the kids are in bed.

As HM says, there is plenty of time after the kids go to sleep for the babysitter to sit down and vege out then.

[roses99]

I babysat through school and university and I always engaged with the kids. If I was babysitting at night, I would play games with the kids, we'd dance in the lounge room etc, then we'd pack up toy, clean teeth and get ready for bed. Then I'd read a story for each child, sometimes a few each. I'd then sing them songs to put them to bed or do whatever their parents had asked me to do (rock, pat, etc).

It was only AFTER the kids were asleep that I would watch TV or study.

$20/h is a lot to pay a lazy teenager.

[Fairey]

When I was a wee las I used to love the couch veg out after the kidlets were in bed - because I was tuckered out! I'd play with the kids, play outside, cook dinner, tuck them into bed, read bedtime stories etc.
Of course, this would all depend on what time I was baby sitting, etc. I was getting paid $2.50 an hour and got all the way up to $5 an hour (Whoo!!) I had quite a few regular jobs.
I'll need baby sitters myself in years to come. And if our babysitter sat on the lounge all night, and didn't interact with our kids, said babysitter would not be coming back, and all my friends with kids would know about it.

[Therese]

When I used to babysit I would play with the children and then after they were in bed sit down and do nothing. So that is what I would expect.

[countrylivingmum]

For $20 an hour I would expect the baby sitter to play and engage with the kids! Even if they played for an hour or so got in to their pjs and then watched a kids movie ect before bed. Once the children are in bed it wouldn't bother me but while they are up I think this is the least they should do.

[New Horizons]

I gave up on babysitters. No matter how much they charged, they just never did it right. It's not that I asked for much either. I'm not picky, but do expect not to have the child so distressed she starts vomiting and is unable to breathe because of actions of the sitter. So no more babysitters for us.

[Sassy Dingo]

Could you try to be specific? I'm just thinking of my first time I babysat. Hadn't really had much to do with kids (was an emergency and I was doing it for my neighbours) and I didn't really know what to do.

Could you say something like 'please limit screen time to an hour before dinner, then after dinner their routine is to help clean up, play a board game, shower, teeth, story and then bed?'

They might just not know what you expect.