Finding a good babysitter can be difficult. You want someone you can trust but also someone your kids like and are willing to play and engage with them. Good babysitters are hard to come by these days!
If you have a young teen at home looking for a way to make some money, babysitting is a great way for them to earn some cash. Becoming a good babysitter will take some practice and with your help, they will soon become that amazing babysitter everyone calls to hire!
What Is A Mommy's Helper
When my daughters were approaching babysitting age (about 12-13 years old), I wanted them to get some supervised hands-on experience taking care of younger kids who were not their siblings. One way for them to do this was to be a Mommy's Helper.
A Mommy's helper is a "tween"/young teen who helps take care of someone's children while the mom is home. The mom benefits from extra hands to help entertain her kids so she can get something done and the teen gets guided supervision from the mom on caring for children.
Typically a Mommy's helper is not paid or not paid very much but more than likely after your teen is well trained the family he or she has been helping will hire them in the future for a full-paid babysitting gig!
It is also highly recommended that your babysitter in training attend a first aid and CPR class as well as a babysitter safety class if available in your area. If this opportunity is not available in your area, it is a good idea to talk through some possible emergency situations your teen might encounter when babysitting.
Situations like choking, burns, scrapes, and cuts as well as allergic reactions are a few areas I suggest you help your teen learn about before they start babysitting.
What Is A Babysitter Bag
Babysitting was one of my favorite jobs as a teen. I was a regular sitter for several different families and had the opportunity to even travel out of town as a babysitter for one family. Early on in my babysitting career, I came up with a valuable tool I used that helped me every time I had a babysitting job. That tool was my babysitter bag!
What is a babysitter bag you ask? It is a bag full of games, crafts, activities, and other fun ideas I packed and brought along to my babysitting gigs. I always tried to change out the items in my bag on a regular basis so that the kids were surprised every time I babysat them. Not only did my babysitter bag help me pass the time quickly but the kids looked forward to playing with whatever I had packed.
A babysitter bag takes a little forethought and planning but I've got a great list of ideas for you and your teen to use.
9 Essential Items To Pack In Your Babysitter Bag
As you help your teen pack their babysitter bag make sure to take the age of the kids they will be babysitting into consideration. Small little toys are not the best idea for young children however baby toys probably won't go over well with older children. For infants up to age 2, it is best to use the toys they have at home since they tend to put everything in their mouth at this age anyway.
Here are 9 great ideas to get you and your teen inspired!
1 - Storybooks
Pack a few of your favorite childhood picture books into your babysitter bag to share with the kids you are watching. If you don't have any it might be a good idea to stop at your local library and pick up a few to bring along. Here are some favorites you could look for:
- Brown Bear, Brown Bear What Do You See
- Corduroy
- Curious George
- Dr. Suess books
- Where's Waldo
- Dogman series
2 - Coloring books & fun-shaped crayons
A new coloring book is always fun for kids especially if they get to use cool-shaped crayons. Pick up a few coloring books at your local Dollar Store, or Walmart or you could print off a few free coloring page printables online.
Crayons can be made in a variety of different shapes other than the traditional shape. I like to make my own from old broken crayons! If you have never done it before it is a lot of fun! Check out this tutorial on How To Make Heart-Shaped Crayons.
If you don't have time to make your own, order a few from Amazon.
(If you aren't an Amazon Prime member yet, sign up today!)
3 - Board Games & Puzzles
Everyone loves to play a new game or put together a new puzzle so pack a game or puzzle you love to play and teach it to the kids you're babysitting. Again, if you don't have any board games to bring along check with your local library to see if they offer games to check out.
Here are some fun games you could bring along:
4 - Stuffed Animals
Bringing several of your own stuffed animals to a babysitting gig is a great way to break the ice if this is a new family your teen is babysitting.
Most kids love stuffed animals and will enjoy an opportunity to play with the new stuffed animals a babysitter brings with them.
There are so many fun games and activities kids can play using stuffed animals too! While babysitting you can create a zoo, play veterinarian, hide one stuffed animal and play the "hot and cold" game where the person who hid the toy says "hot" when the seeker gets closer to the hiding location.
5 - Crafts
Kids of all ages enjoy making crafts. This is a great activity if your teen is babysitting several kids of a variety of ages because crafts can be modified to fit abilities most of the time. Here are some simple crafts to bring along on a babysitting job:
- air dry clay
- do-a-dots
- paper bag puppets
- tie-dye butterflies (full tutorial here)
6 - Scavenger hunt
Scavenger hunts are fun for all ages! Not only are they fun but it is a great activity to get kids outside if you plan to do a nature scavenger hunt. There are tons of free printables available so make sure to print a few off before heading to your babysitting job! Here are two free printables I created to get you started that I'm sure you and the kids you are babysitting will love!
7 - Costumes / Props
Kids have BIG imaginations and a fun way to pass the time while babysitting is to play with dress-ups! Pack some fun dress-up accessories like feather boas, fancy purses, gloves, hats, and costume jewelry for the kids to play with.
Old prom dresses or bridesmaid dresses, men's ties, colorful vests, suit coats, or sports jerseys all make for fun dress-up costumes. A quick trip to your local thrift shop is a great place to find some fun dress-up pieces at a very reasonable price.
8 - Ingredients to Make a Treat
Helping in the kitchen is a great activity for kids especially when you are babysitting. Making a special treat with a babysitter while mom and dad are gone is a fun and memorable activity. It doesn't have to be a difficult and complex recipe but rather something simple that allows the kids to be the helpers and get involved in making something tasty.
Make sure if your teen brings along something that needs to be baked that you instruct them on how to properly and safely use an oven! Here are some simple treat ideas to bring along in your babysitter bag:
- Rice Krispie treats (gluten-free)
- No-bake chocolate-covered graham crackers
- pre-made sugar cookie dough & frosting- let the kids roll out the dough and use cookie cutters to make fun shapes, bake then frost
- Ice cream in a bag
9 - Flashlights
Playing with flashlights isn't an activity most kids get to do on a regular basis which is why it is so much fun to do when a babysitter comes over. There are so many fun games to play with flashlights you will not run out of activities to do with kids anytime soon! Here are a few ideas to get you started:
- Hide and seek - everyone hides and the "seeker" uses a flashlight to shine on the people they find.
- Flashlight freeze tag - the person who is "it" must tag the others with the light beam from a flashlight to freeze them. Those who are not "it" can use their flashlight beams to unfreeze those who are frozen.
- "I spy" - One person finds an object in the room and gives a clue as to what they "spy/see" the rest of the players shine their flashlights on different objects as they guess what the person "spies
Planning ahead and helping your teen prepare for an upcoming babysitting job is the best way for them to have a successful experience. Not only will the children they are caring for have a great time but I'm sure your teen will too!
A Must-Have Babysitter Information Sheet
In addition to having a well-stocked babysitter bag, it is important that your teen babysitter have all the necessary contact information, emergency numbers, home address, and special instructions for the kids they are watching readily available. I created this handy free babysitter information printable for your teen to take along with them to their next babysitting job.
If there was an emergency your teen will have all the information they need to handle a difficult situation like allergy information, contact numbers, and even the home address where they are babysitting. Not only is it a useful tool but the parents he or she is babysitting for will love the peace of mind it brings them when they are away from their children. Make sure to click on the link to get this free printable or Pin it for later!
The Babysitter Information Sheet
What are you waiting for? Help your teen pack their babysitter bag today so they are ready for a great babysitting experience!
