Governess or Nanny: Who is best for your child?

For the parents who are hiring a professional help for their children for the first time there is often a confusion between such professions as a nanny and a governess.

So, who is the governess and is it the right time to hire one for your child ?

You may find the answers in this article. 

While nanny is mainly responsible for the general well-being of a child, governess has more educationally oriented responsibilities. Governess is always specially educated and have qualifications in childcare and education.
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Professional governess will be responsible not only for taking care of your children, teaching foreign languages (English, French, Spanish, German, Italian, or Russian) or for playing a musical instrument but also teaching rules and standards of etiquette in public and at the table, good communication manners and sense of responsibility.

​Governess is also responsible for social, cultural and psychological development of a child. 

If parents want their children to grow up intelligent and well-mannered members of society but are unable to be around them and teach everything themselves - hiring a governess is the most reasonable decision. Governess can live with the family or come on a daily basis and is usually employed for school-aged children.

However, it is a common practice to hire one for very young children as well, if parents want them to be bi- or trilingual from an early age. It is a well-known fact that if children grow in the environment of a foreign language they are more likely to be bilingual or trilingual.
Which is why it is a huge advantage of hiring a governess – you do not have to risk and send your little ones to a foreign country to learn the language. 

Governess will not only dress and bathe the children but also teach them how to do it themselves in a proper manner. She is responsible for teaching children folding clothes, tidying their room, essentials of personal hygiene. Governess may also be responsible for feeding children but it will also include some teaching of good manners. The etiquette at the table may include proper using of cutlery, teaching when to start to eat and when to finish, how to eat different meals and how to behave at the table in general.
 
The activities with a governess would not be limited to learning only. They often play different games with children and have fun together. However, every game is educational to some extent. Games are meant to train children’s memory and attention, to teach them loyalty, responsibility, independence, self-reliance and help them to develop their own personality. For younger children games help to develop fine motor skills, logic and desire for learning.

Governess is also very likely to help children to develop their talents and special skills. Very often governess is skilled in playing several music instruments, trained in sports, dancing, painting, or different art crafts. 

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If your children are of school age but you cannot be around them before and after school, hiring a governess would be extremely beneficial. First, governess will make sure that a child does not forget to take anything important, e.g. all the necessary books, notes, changing clothes etc. Second, after school a governess will make sure that a child has lunch, does all the homework and does not spend the whole afternoon in front of TV. 
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​She could also be the one who speaks with schoolteachers about child’s performance and behavior and then reports it to the parents. 
In countries such as Russia, UAE, Qatar etc., which are neither English nor French speaking, it is extremely popular that families employ English or French governesses for their children who speak only in English or French to them. 

Historically English and French governesses tend to be the most famous in the world due to their educational and cultural backgrounds. They used to travel around the world for their employers hundreds of years ago.

 If you are hesitating in choosing the governess for your children, it is known that English governesses focus more on the intellectual upbringing of children and their education and often support such areas as music, sport and arts. French governesses concentrate more on the psychological, emotional and social development of children and are famous for their ability to set boundaries in a friendly and loving manner. 

If the parents want their children to pursue further education in the best schools of the UK, France or the USA, they employ the governess from the very early age so that their children are bilingual and well mannered. 

Usually the governess would live with such families and travel with them whenever needed. She is likely to stay with the family for many years and becomes an essential part of it. For children governess is much more than only a private teacher – she is a coach and motivator, a good friend and mentor at the same time. 

If you are looking for a highly professional governess or nanny in any part of the world or if you are a governess / nanny who is looking for a nice family to work for – Morgan & Mallet International is here for you.

Do not hesitate to contact any of our agencies worldwide and our consultants will assist you with any of your enquiries !

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