Initially it can seem very hard work to balance up the care needs and play interests of children stretching perhaps from babyhood into nursery or the school years. If you have previously worked in an early years setting such as a day nursery, the broad age range may feel rather odd. But of course, this is normal family life. The narrow age bands of pre-schools and nurseries are an oddity in terms of childhood, and some settings look for ways to bring children of different ages together for at least part of the day.
Part of your responsibility as a nanny is to create a day and a week that has something for everyone. Weighing up what everyone needs can be even more pressing as the long summer holiday approaches, and there is no nursery or school to structure the days. But children are more likely to be patient and understanding when they feel confident that their needs are going to be at the fore at some point.
So, what are the main issues when you are juggling the care of children of different ages?
Younger ones need a closer eye and attention to their physical care needs. The older ones will sometimes be happy to keep you company or can occupy themselves while you change a nappy or give a bottle.
Your aim is to manage the expectations of the older ones and help them to understand what must be done for the baby. But you do not want to give the impression that the baby or toddler is getting in the way of what would otherwise be an enjoyable day.
Your skills and creativity are needed to ensure that, as far as possible, everyone has their turn to exercise choice about music for dancing or having a go in the cardboard boxes or den built in the garden.
On occasions you will have to give the older ones their own safe space for playing. They want to build their castle or arrange an elaborate tea party for the dolls, without having an eager toddler charging through it all. Sometimes the older ones will be better sitting up to a table and the toddler safer on the floor.
Sometimes your attention to the younger one will mean that an outdoor activity that's important to the older ones can be stretched out a bit, but not forever. You may need to say, 'I think I can keep Emily giggling for about another five minutes, then we'll have to move on.'
Once the youngest of your charges becomes an older baby or toddler, all the children may relish the same activity, but you'll notice they enjoy it in different ways. Having experienced their sometimes conflicting needs, it's time for you to brainstorm and consider some possibilities for handling them.
For example, a trip to your local park requires some forethought if not every child in your charge is mobile or independent.
Find ways for the older ones to help you carry the things you need, especially when part of the fun of the trip is using a bus or train. If the children do not have little backpacks, would their parents be happy to fund a shopping expedition to get some?
In the park, find a place where you can lay out a picnic and the slightly older children can move away from you in safety, but still within eye-and ear-shot. The babies can play or kick on the blanket.
Encourage the older ones to bring back items of interest to show you. But sometimes you could take the younger one with you when the older ones call out, 'Come and see what we've found', rather than always disappointing them with, 'No, I have to stay with the baby'.
A baby or toddler in a buggy will be as interested in the ducks or squirrels as other children. Get down at her level and point out what has excited the others. In a similar way you can make sure that the buggy riders feel involved in a local shopping trip.
Older babies and toddlers enjoy different kinds of arts and crafts.
Your task with this kind of activity is to enable the younger ones to get their hands into the materials, without expecting that they will make something at the end. The joy is in squeezing the play dough, swishing around the paint and crumpling up the paper.
It may be easier to have a younger child with the materials on her highchair tray. She can have fun, but be out of grabbing reach of her older brother's carefully crafted dough sculpture or handprint. A toddler is also keen to watch, learn and copy.
You can admire what the older children produce while allowing the younger ones to experiment and feel the materials. Some under-twos are ready to have their swirly painting or model displayed. Why not also take some photos? Then the children's parents can enjoy what their youngest did, and the children can all look back on 'the day we did the handprints'.
Deal courteously with any comments from older children, such as 'Davy's just making a mess'. You could explain, 'At the moment, Davy needs to use his fingers as a paintbrush'.
Cooking activities with a mixed age range call for a balancing act. Under-twos enjoy preparing and cooking food as much as older ones. Your skills are called upon in the choice of projects and division of labour.
Yeast dough for bread rolls or pizza, unlike pastry, is a robust material that actually benefits from being pummelled. Younger children can make a satisfying shape and feel proud to eat it later.
Go for biscuit or cake recipes that need stirring rather than creaming with an electric mixer. Take an impressionistic approach to decoration, rather than insisting that all the children must place currants precisely on their gingerbread men.
Three-and four-year-olds like making sandwiches and younger children can lay them out on the plate, along with ready-cut fruit or vegetables.
All children need some support with their care needs, but there will be more physical care with a baby or toddler in the home.
Look for ways to manage the expectations of the older ones about the care routines, without 'blaming' the younger one for holding you all up. You may say, 'I need to change Emily before we go to the one o'clock club. Would you like to come and have a chat while I do?' You can find positive ways for the older ones to lend a hand in care routines, as well as the ordinary household routines. Children like to feel helpful and they learn valuable skills by doing so.
You can respond positively when the older ones help the younger ones or say 'Well done' to them. Of course, you are handling a delicate balance and should not tip towards putting pressure on older children to do all the adjusting or to be a 'big' boy or girl all the time.