Babysitting is one of the best summer jobs to have, because not only is the pay great, but you also can make the job super fun. When I was younger, I had a babysitter that I couldn't wait to come over. Now that I think back, she wasn't that much better than the rest, but the reason she was so super-cool in my mind was that she always (ALWAYS) had a bag full of something to do. When I started babysitting, I shamelessly adopted her bag full of babysitting tips and it has never failed! No matter how bored the kids thought they were before I arrived, they were always excited to see what was in my bag!
Here are five quick pack-it-in-a-bag babysitting tips to make sure the kids you babysit have a great time:
1. DVDs -- if you're babysitting at night, the kids are sometimes cranky from a long day and too tired to really do any activities. If you bring your own DVDs, they will have a much better time because they haven't seen the movie a million times. Also, you don't have to worry about having something to watch on tv. These are a few of the best kid-friendly movies to bring to the job:
-Madagascar
-Cars
-Any Disney princess movie
-Finding Nemo
-A Bug's Life
-The Bee Movie
2. If you're babysitting in the afternoon, then baking is a great way to go. All you have to do is bring a box of cake batter, and you can ask the parents of the kid/s you're going to babysit if they have eggs and any other ingredients. If they don't then you can bring your own. Kids will love you after you pull out this trick, because not only do they get to make a cake, but they get to eat it too! Just be sure to ask about allergies in advance and cook carefully!
3. If you're going to be babysitting for more than one day, then doing an art project is also a great idea. Last summer, I babysat two girls for about five hours a day for a week. I brought all my old magazines, and sketchbooks. I then challenged them to make collages on every single page by the end of the week. The girls had a blast making their books, and even though they didn't finish during the week, their mom told me that they still continue to work on the books.
4. If you're babysitting girls, then bringing nail polish is also a good idea. Remember when you were younger, and thought that your babysitter was super cool, and you wish that she would give you a makeover? Well, here is a way that you can give that to your "kids". Just make sure that you put newspaper under the girl's nails to make sure that you don't make a mess.We have great ideas for manicures too!
5. Board games!! This is an easy way to get the kids on your side. Bring some of your older "original" games, like Life or Connect Four, because these aren't very popular any more especially since there are more versions of board games. Board games are a great way to make the time go by faster, and you can bring prizes to give each kids when they win, prizes can be from a bag of popcorn to just little toys from the dollar store. Every kid loves to win something!
