How Hosting an Au Pair Can Help Your Family

Come Out and Play: How hosting an au pair can help you this spring, this summer, and all year long!

It’s gotten increasingly difficult for families to find childcare and au pairs are a great solution to that challenge.

The start of spring means the start of outdoor sports and other afternoon activities – and hosting an au pair can help!

Spring’s arrival brings a welcomed relief for all who endured a harsh Wisconsin winter. With spring comes the promise of sunnier afternoons, bright flowers in bloom, and weeks of warmer days to come. While spring is already an exciting time, hosting an au pair with Au Pair in America could make spring afternoons even more exciting for your kids – and much easier for you!

Not familiar with the au pair program? Hosting an au pair can be a game-changer for busy parents, and we have the very first au pair program in the United States accessible to us right here in Madison!

About Au Pair in America

The Au Pair in America program allows young people from abroad, aged 18 to 26, to travel to the U.S. on the Exchange Visitor Program for a unique cultural exchange experience. Since 1986 these young visitors have been coming to America to acquire a better understanding and appreciation of American life while living with an American family and caring for their young children for up to 45 hours per week. 

Safiya Jama, a local mom (and former Fulbright Scholar, who knows the importance of cultural exchange programs) is the local Community Counselor for Au Pair in America. She serves as the liaison for both host families and au pairs in the area. She shares – there are so many reasons why families in Madison choose to have an au pair over other childcare choices. Our university and medical families especially appreciate the flexibility and affordability of the au pair program.”

Benefits of Hosting

When considering child care options, au pairs provide some unique benefits:

Flexibility.  The au pair’s weekly customizable schedule helps families easily deal with changing shift schedules and late evening or weekend hours. After school activities, unexpected school closings, and sick days are way less stressful this way! Between jobs, side-gigs, kids, school, sports and the many extras we try to fit into our lives, it’s tough to decide where to start. An au pair can easily adapt to your needs, providing up to 45 hours of child care per week with a customized schedule of up to 10 hours per day. One host parent said – Au pair in America has given us great flexibility and peace-of-mind that we have a trusted person available to provide continuity of care as well as ’emergencies’ caused by last minute changes in schedules, school closings, etc.”

Cultural exchange. Sharing and engaging in different customs and traditions, learning a new language, or reinforcing bilingualism is a great way to broaden a child’s knowledge and to enrich their own cultural understanding. 

We’ve all had those days (no, weeks!) when an an extra set of hands at home would make all the difference. Combine that with the relief of knowing our children have another person they trust available to care for them. On days when kids are sick or the snow has closed school (but alas, not work), having an au pair to support the family would be a game changer. If this sounds like something that could make sense for your family, check out the details below!

Au Pair Placement

Au Pair in America is committed to helping you find the best match to meet your family’s unique preferences and child care needs. A member of the Placement Team will work with you during the matching process, get to know you personally and provide support whenever needed.  You can feel confident because their au pairs (from more than 50 qualified countries):

  • All have at least 200 hours of recent child care experience
  • Go through a rigorous screening process and background check
  • Come with medical and liability insurance, a United States Department of State sponsored visa, and a valid driver’s license
  • Attend a comprehensive orientation program that features child development training, child safety training, and a customized Red Cross training.

Interested in making your spring (and summer!) a bit brighter by hosting an au pair with APIA?

Click here to view current available au pairs at zero cost and with no obligation. 
New host families in the Madison area receive a special discount!

Contact Safiya Jama at [email protected] or (608)949-4189.

Madison Family
Madison is such a cool city. We love it around here. We live here too and our vision is to create a platform where real parents share real stories and we can all learn from one another. You will get to know real moms doing life right here in our neighborhoods and find information on a wealth of topics – local summer camps, preschools, swim lessons, shops and boutiques, events and experiences as so much more.

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