Au Pair Activity Corner

 

April 14, 2011

Au Pairs Stepping Outside Their Comfort Zone

Recently, a small group of au pairs and I stepped outside our perspective comfort zones and tried something new.  Okay, we tried a new restaurant which might not sound like a big deal, but this was an Ethiopian restaurant where eating with your fingers is not only allowed, it’s required. 

Ethiopian food consists of spicy vegetable and meat dishes, in the form of a “wat”, or thick stew.  It is served on a circular straw table called a “mesob”.  The  food is placed atop a large sourdough flatbread called “injera”.  Ethiopians eat with their hands using pieces of the injera to pick up bites of the food.  This was a difficult concept for some of us to grasp!  “Where’s the fork?” was a common question.  Oh well…when in Ethiopia (or Cambridge)…  

The restaurant was a nice backdrop for laughs and provided a good opportunity for the au pairs and I to catch up.  Good communication between an au pair and her Local Area Representative is very important.  Intimate settings like this provide au pairs with an opportunity to speak openly and honestly about common problems they might share.  It provides me with the opportunity to provide counseling on a more personal level.  But it’s also just good fun!  As you can see in the photos, we all had a good time. 

 

Winney brought along a friend.

Song and Kamila trying out the injera.

Larissa, me, and Angelica getting ready to be adventurous.

Monthly Activities

Monthly activities are an important component of the au pair program.  As the Local Area Representative, it is my responsibility to organize au pair activities each month.  I try to make the activities interesting and fun for the au pairs.  Sometimes they are educational, sometimes they involve child safety training, sometimes they involve cultural exchange, and sometimes they are purely fun! 

I really enjoy the monthly activities because no matter what we are doing, it gives everyone a chance to catch up.  It is a great opportunity for me to get to know the au pairs on a more personal level.  These meetings are especially important for the new au pairs, who are usually very excited to attend their first au pair get together so that they can meet some of the other au pairs in the area.  It is a wonderful opportunity for the more “seasoned” au pairs to offer advice to the newcomers.   

Last September, I took a group of au pairs to Plimouth Plantation, where they learned about the first American settlers and their encounters with the Native American Wompanoag tribe.

Go Au Pair requires all au pairs to attend at least 4 meetings for each 12 month program year.  An au pair who does not attend at least 4 meetings will not receive her completion certificate and thus will forfeit her security deposit.

I also organize two family activities each year.  The Department of State requires that host families attend at least one outing each year.  If a host family can not attend one of the designated family activities, depending on the venue, they are usually welcome to join us at one of our regular au pair activities.  Host families should contact me if they have any questions about this rule.

Au Pairs and host families can view the current Activity Schedule here.  I will also update this page each month to show highlights of our activities.  Details regarding each outing are sent via email.