Nanny in Vancouver, British Columbia

Dear Family, Thank you for your interest. I love spending time with children and have deliberately chosen childcare as my occupation. I seek to create an environment which is loving, safe and nurturing, where children feel happy and can bring their uniqueness forth. This gives me the opportunity to appreciate their personalities and support the further development of their interests. I look for activities that can provide kids rich, memorable and meaningful experiences. It is a joy for me to have the opportunity to let children feel cared for with their food. I prepare it with love, which I value as the most nurturing ingredient, and present it to them in fun ways that can also support their learning. With toddlers, I will make numbers and letters with their food. Other times, the presentation of the food is linked to their interests; little cars made out of apple slices and grapes, for example. I eat very healthy and have observed that in spending time with me, children take an interest in foods that are nutritious. I value the importance of the rhythm of a child’s day, varying between physically active periods of time, more focussed activities such as making puzzles, playing with blocks and reading, and rest. I prepare children for their naps, so that when the time comes for them to sleep, they are ready. Some of my favorite activities with children are reading to them and fostering a love for books, singing, making puzzles and taking walks. I love nature and providing kids with a rich exposure to it, is meaningful to me. It is fascinating to listen to classical music with children, especially Mozart and Bach. I also really like to expose children to a diversity of cultures. I have travelled extensively, lived in very diverse countries, and have a deep love of cultures and customs. As I do not watch television, it is not natural for me to sit in front of a screen with children. As such, it seems that between naps and meals, there is not enough time in the day for so many activities that are enriching and fun. I do recur to video clips for songs or for a child to get a visual of something they are asking about or curious to learn more about. Gratitude and appreciation are two values which I foster in children, as well as an acknowledgement of the beauty of Life. This trickles down to an appreciation for order, as the beauty of a space. While I’m happy for play areas to look alive, I teach children to clean up and leave their toys tidy when we are ready to move on to a new activity. As a lifelong learner, a committed caregiver and a person who loves children and wants to offer them her best, I am constantly expanding my knowledge of early childhood development and any specific topic I observe would contribute to my work with a child. In my relationship with parents, I highly value clarity and open communication. I want to know your expectations, the limits you establish for your children and your values, so that my interactions with your children are in harmony with them and support them. I came into childcare from a beautiful and rewarding career of twelve years as a language teacher of English, Spanish and Mandarin Chinese, at prestigious schools in Colombia and China. I now want a greater focus on individual children, and spending longer periods of time with them. I am fascinated by the language acquisition process, and am thrilled to have the experience of witnessing it and contributing to it, with the little ones. In valuing language, I am also very purposeful in how I speak to children, the words I use and how I convey what I want to say to them. My tone is cheerful, loving and inviting, and my choice of words positive and motivating. I followed a five year undergraduate program and later specialized in bilingual education. Due to my father’s job, I grew up on an American oil compound, with English as my first language and Spanish as my mother tongue. I speak English ‘natively’, with an American accent. My skill set is strong, and I am always happy to learn more. I lead a very healthy lifestyle, love Life and live in a state of joy. This I bring to the children I work with, and their families. I have been fortunate to work with a wonderful family and care for their now two-and-a-half year old son. He will soon be entering pre-school, and so sadly, the time has come to bid him farewell. While mourning the end of such a beautiful time together, I do acknowledge that Life is inviting me now to embark on my next beautiful childcare adventure, and that I am eager about! * the form is only giving me 'Canada' as a country option, so I will share with you here that I am a Colombian national, and currently I am in the United States, living in Chicago, Illinois. Thank you for your time and consideration, Lina.