As the mother of two sons and the sister of four brothers and the wife of a MAN....
I would not care whether or not the "manny" or "nanny" was a male or female. As long as they pass a background check, I feel comfortable with them, and my children like them, then they can watch my children.
Isn't it weird that as women we want to be treated equally but then when a man wants to do something that is normally a "woman's" job we wonder what is wrong with them? I hate that.
Laura
We have a manny. He's a close family friend who is in his mid 30s, and worked in finance. He was a deacon, sunday school teacher, and b-ball coach. Prior to working for us, he had no experience with infants. He cared for our DS for 11 months at 15 hours a week. He is the picture of patience, and gentle to the core. We were lucky to have him.
Were we to have a nanny again I wouldn't hesitate to have a manny.
Fanged Bunny
If I were to hire a nanny in the first place, I would totally consider a male nanny/manny IF they had all the same qualifications that I'm looking for in a female nanny. But, those qualifications include enthusiastically participating in "girly" activities with my daughters (tea parties, pretend "shopping", arts & crafts, etc)...which I generally find to be rare, even in male caretakers.
No.
Yes, if ever I had been in the market for an in-home child care provider, I would have been open to a male. I have three sons, and they would have enjoyed hanging out with a guy during the day.
Lets see...
My dad was a great dad! My brothers are great dad's! My husband is a great dad! My son's are great brothers and awesome with kids.
Yes I would hire one. Men are just as capable and being loving and caring and meeting childrens needs just as much as women are. If they werent then why would we trust our husbands/ boyfriends/ SO/ dad/ brother/ uncle/ grandpa to be left alone with our kids? These manny's are someones family also. These guys shouldn't be judged just because they are male.
Just because your female doesn't mean your cut out to take care of kids. There are females who hurt kids out there also. There is just as many females who shouldn't take care of kids. Females are capable of hurting, abusing, killing kids also.
We had two different teen boys babysit for my kids when they were younger.. they were great with my boys! They got right down the on the floor and played with blocks and trucks. They would dig for hours in the sand box with them. They would curl up on the couch and read books together. They loved to be outside and find toads and ants and what ever else. My oldest son is a great babysitter. He loves being with younger kids and is so sweet and great with kids! Younger kids flock to him and he drops what he is doing ( even with his friends) and will play with the younger kids when they want to. I think its great that these kids ( boys and girls) look up to my son. He is a great role model ( in my eyes) for these kids. There is nothing sinister about his actions in anyway!
Of course I would consider a manny! I could see a manny being a better fit in our family of 4 boys and a girly tomboy than a miss priss girl sitter... I could also see a tomboy girl being a better fit than a clean cut male who doesn't like to get his hands dirty.
Depends on the guy or girl and the family who would be a better fit, it should be based on the person and it shouldn't be based on gender only!
No, because I have yet to meet a man who can multi task and do it with ease. Secondly, women can just as easily abuse a child, however, a man is visually oriented and I would not want to take that chance with my child no matter if it was a boy or girl. So no, I would not hire a man to watch my children.
I would not hire a male Nanny. I guess I am a little traditional. I know men can be wonderful with kids, but I don't think I would leave a man in charge of kids.
The school just hired a male for their after school program. I thought that was wonderful, although he has females with him. He is more interactive with the children. He plays cards, board games, checks, and sports with the children. Prior to that, I had just saw two boys wrestling and the teacher in charge did a great job at getting them to knock it off, but I do remember thinking they need a man for these bigger kids.
So back to my answer...I guess if I had two boys, I might. They can be a little more rough and out of control. Since I have a girl, never.
I have two grown sons, but I would have definitely have hired a male 'nanny' and still think that is a wonderful idea. When my children were growing up I tried to have boy babysitters and that was always wonderful. The boys loved them! Just throwing in my two cents. And the boy babysitters always did exactly what was expected.
uhhhh... so hard to answer but No. I know there are probably 100 non-child molester male nannies out there for every 1 pedophile... but I just can't take that chance. Maybe because it's hit too close to home too many times. I feel sad that I am that way but I have my reasons.
As long as he is qualified. I think it is a good thing to have children to have men in the childcare field.
My brother was our nanny for about a year and he was pretty awesome. We called him our "Super Manny." However, I wouldn't feel comfortable hiring a male nanny. But I would feel uncomfortable with almost anyone I didn't know watching my kids, so maybe I'm not the best opinion for you. But I can tell you that if I had to hire someone, I'd hire a woman but probably not a man. Certainly most men are not child predators, but most child predators are men, so I'd just want to cut my chances as much as possible. Not fair, but I'm willing to do unfair to keep my kids as safe as possible.
I don't know. I have never actually had anyone watch my kids that I didn't know personally. Then again I am a SAHM so I don't have much call for a nanny or a manny. If I new the man and was comfortable with him, it wouldn't be an issue.
I just asked my husband and without any thought he said, "No."
my concern would be 'is he trained' and 'has he had a background check?' if both answers are yes and i interviewed him and he was a good fit, yes, i'd hire a male nanny.
i don't find any other answer acceptable.
'he might be a pedophile' is a terrible message to send to children about all men. he might be. and yes, women are statistically less likely to abuse sexually. but sexual abuse is not the only type of abuse possible, and women are far more likely to be hormonally unbalanced and to fly off the handle during PMS episodes. does that mean they shouldn't be allowed to care for children?
if women can do brain surgery and fly airplanes, there's absolutely no reason that men shouldn't be nannies, kindergarten teachers or nurses.
khairete
suz
I personally would not. However, from your responses it seems like offering males in your cadre would make sense for some families. For me...I wanted to have a motherly figure care for my children when I am not able to.
Many are saying that it isn't fair to judge...in this particular instance, when you are hiring a stranger to care for your own children...I think it is perfectly acceptable to judge people and to hire exactly who you feel comfortable with.
I absolutely would give as much consideration to a male as I would a female. As with anyone who would be taking care of my child, my most important factor would be how comfortable I am with the person. I do not see myself being biased based on gender. Many men are just as great at caring for children as women are. I do think I would have a heightened awareness for a while as to what interactions he has with my child than I would with a female, but as long as my child showed nothing negative and seems happy, I would gladly give the manny a chance.
Although my son is in daycare, if we were a nannying family, I would totally employ a qualified gentleman! I wish there were more men in daycare. My son is growing up with kind of a warped view of teachers (as in, they are only women). Thank goodness his Dad's a professor -- so he's got a positive example of a male teacher in his life.
For some fairly common circumstances (children with developmental disabilities such as Downs, ADHD, and Autism-- where the ASD disorders overwhelming affect boys) a manny may be preferrable. My 8yo ASD son does well with his female and his male teachers/paras, therapists. However, I notice he self-checks his behavior more when a male is in charge--if he does acts up males have been more effective at staying calm and quite in voice and demeanor and if need be more physically capable of catching up to him and escorting him to a time out. I speak from experience, our last 3 our of 5 au pairs have been male, and although my daughter (also 8) would probably prefer a female au pair like our first two were, she has connected fabulously with the males as well. Our first male au pair had extensive experience as a caregiver in an adult group home (severe disabilities) and he was THE MOST COMPETENT and compationate of our 5 caregivers. I recieved compliments from strangers and friends alike on how well he handled my (4 total) kids. My son's ABA therapist is male and also does amazing work with my son. His teacher and 2 classroom aids are male and they are also great. I think you will find a market niche for parents needing male caregivers who have some experience working with challenging children.
Nope. I realize my answer is illogical, however, I am a victim of sexual abuse and the fact is that men are more often the sexual abusers than women. Even at daycare and school when I see a man is employed and is taking care of my son, it unnerves me. I realize women can abuse in other ways as well. I have to check myself and realize it's my own fear. Not to let go of my fear, but understand why it exists. I have to let go to a certain extent and I do. But, I don't think I would ever feel comfortable hiring a male nanny. I would always 'wonder' and would feel too uneasy with him helping to change my son or helping him the bathroom, etc.
I understand that it's not logical. I admire others and understand if others would hire a manny. If they have done the due diligence and the person is the best fit, that is all that should matter. For me, however, my past would cloud my judgment and sense of security.