Au Pair in America: live-in child care.

Sarah's interviewer says: "Sarah will finish her education as Social Pedagogy Assistant this summer. She has been babysitting her niece and for different families and works at a day care center two days a week. Because of her education she has a lot of ideas for games, activities, songs and handicrafts. She is used to comforting children who cry and settling disputes. She learned to be strict and consistent if necessary. When a family has rules the children have to respect and follow them. Sarah has a lot of driving experience and is used to driving with her little niece in the car. She is a confident swimmer and attended a First Aid course focused on children."

Sibel says: "In general, I have a very close relationship to my parents. We have learned to respect each other's opinions and talk about disagreements. We have a lovely friendship and my parents support my decisions concerning school, job and my plans for the future. I also get along very well with my siblings. I have a very friendly relationship to them. Even when we argue sometimes, I am very happy to have them in my life. As you can imagine, my family is very important for me, but also my friends play a big role in my life. The names of my best friends are Alice, Samira, Vivienne, Aycan and Sinem. Most of them I have known for 12 years, they also graduaded from school this year. We have grown up together and we often spend time together in the afternoons or at the weekend. We always have a lot of fun, they are great persons.

Silvia says: "My name is Silvia and I'm an English teacher. I'm 25 years old and I was born in 1985 in Peru. I studied Foreign Languages at the National University of the Peruvian Amazon from 2003 to 2008, but I also have a degree in Education. I really love my career and my experience working with children made me realize that I really enjoy working with them. I like singing, dancing, playing, coloring, drawing, painting and teaching English to them. I like so much working with Pre School and Primary students...I'm a fun, loving, and patient person. I'm neat, responsible, organized and respectful. The most important values to me are honesty, communication and respect. I'm also very curious, I love discovering new places, new food and meeting new people. I'm open-minded and outgoing even if I'm a bit shy at first. My friends say I'm someone who listens a lot to people, I am a good advisor and I have a good sense of humor. My hobbies are traveling, spending time on the computer, listening to music, cooking, spending time with friends and watching videos. "

Karina says: "During my practical training I have gained a lot of experience in working with children, for example we sang songs, looked at picture books together, played games or did sports. The most important thing is that the children have fun and that they learn something....I think it is important that children spend more time playing outside in nature than playing computer games or watching TV... My hobbies are snowboarding, travelling, listening to music, dancing, and taking photos, but my favourite hobby is meeting friends. My friends are really important to me...I also want to experience the American way of life. I want to get to know the culture and American traditions. I want to see how American families celebrate Christmas or in particular Halloween or Thanksgiving. I am also interested in the educational style of a different family and their way of living together."