It is a sweating December afternoon and after 3:00 o’clock, I pile three children (I do not have a blood relation to) into my soccer-mum car. Today, we are learning to swim.
Usually, I have Callie – who is 3 – with me all throughout the day. We go to gymnastics, and Bunnings, and the beach, and build fairylands in the backyard. Max who is 7, and Sarah who is 10, are in my care before and after school. We complete pick up/drop offs, homework, birthday parties (you would not believe how many birthday parties are in Year 2), and collectively, we are Crayola veterans.
I’ve been with the family for 6 months at this point, and started with them the very first week they moved here. I believe their parents raised them in a trendy Leichhardt apartment before this. My heart cries for the absence of grass and dirt in their fingernails then. Storytime: One afternoon, I splashed Morning Fresh and the garden hose on a camping tarp and told them to slip and slide! This was much like my childhood. They cried for 20 minutes because it was all too itchy. Anyway, I love them, and I have successfully broken them out of their city comforts (or grass allergies) since.
I work as a Nanny on the South Coast of NSW if it wasn’t clear. I do not kidnap children and do homework, submerge them in bodies of water and then take them home. I do take them to the pool though, legally! And today, we are learning to swim!
We are at the pool, and Max, Sarah and their towels have already sprung off me. The pair are in the water, happy as, splashing their new instructors. Callie and I are poolside, dry. Callie is shaking, sobbing, terrified at the mere sight of the water. Her little claws are dug into the sides of my arms. I look like a mother koala with her baby koala, if the baby koala was screaming red. Poor Cal. It was an adorable and traumatic display.
Callie was rip-roaring and stricken, and that afternoon presented no good climate for a positively-impacting or educational swimming lesson. It wouldn’t have been productive to her growth – scaring her more, or being cruel, or forcing her in to swim in a pool comprised of 90% her tears. It’s a 45 minute lesson and I remind myself, she is 3. So, we took the lessons slow. We broke off the mountain into parts and strived for what we could reasonably accomplish each week.
That frightful day, we sat together on the edge and put our feet in. Through her bravery, I splashed a little of the cool water onto us. I was doing anything to get her more comfortable. Summer, her amazing swim teacher, was instrumental, helpful and cheery throughout. We weren’t taking steps back and getting out of the pool, but staying in, at least with our feet, for the duration of the lesson. Teary and heaving hiccups, yes, but holding hands with Callie’s grip so strong. We got home, and she was bouncing that she had finished the lesson.
In her strapped-up booster seat, en route the next week, there were some anxious sobs. But, we were persevering and being resilient. We sat in the pool again. In lesson, we graduated to blowing bubbles with our lips underwater and putting goggles on without fogging them up (with steam and tears). Callie was leaping onto Summer and paddling in circles with her by the end of it. She was getting confident. By Week 3, lessons were as usual. Callie (the conquer) was also, flinging herself off of me at the same time of Max and Sarah and now, splashing Summer. She was rip-roaring towards the water and not away, excited for the lesson.
For Callie to overcome her fear, I needed to not overreact to the situation, as I can do. Instead; developing the outline of a plan, breaking off parts of it, and being consistent with small actions towards the goal. I needed to be actual and reasonable, so I was positive, encouraging and affirming. In actions and words, I was careful how I talked and my the nature of my body language. I was confident and reassuring so Cal knew she was safe. I tried to use what professional values I admire most; those of patience, perseverance and resilience. I believe comforting, pushing a boundary (to an extent) and positive reinforcement of a child, all go hand in hand to having a positive experience and practice. When Cal and I approached the problem together, as a team, it was less daunting for her. Teamwork is crucial and beneficial for an array of professional projects, but for this one, it was essential that 3-year-old Cal could tackle her fears feeling less alone and supported. Additionally, having the sensitivity and ability to empathise with children has proved to be one of my strongest qualities as a Nanny. Using ‘<a href="http://Science of People. 2020. 10 Essential People Skills You Need to Succeed. [online] Available at: <https://www.scienceofpeople.com/people-skills/>." data-type="URL" data-id="Science of People. 2020. 10 Essential People Skills You Need to Succeed. [online] Available at: people skills’, especially in childcare, is at the core of what we do. At the forefront, we are dedicated carers, and in our backbone, we play hard and match a child’s fairyland creations. Lastly, leading with compassion, supported by teaching lessons of perseverance and resilience has never failed me, instead these values are the centre of my professional backbone.
References:
Chi, C., 2021. 5 Dos and Don’ts When Making a SMART Goal [Examples]. [online] Blog.hubspot.com. Available at: <https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/smart-goal-examples>.
Science of People. 2020. 10 Essential People Skills You Need to Succeed. [online] Available at: <https://www.scienceofpeople.com/people-skills/>.
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