Whether or not we choose to send our children back to school when their Grade is phased in, our need for childcare and educational support is needed now more than ever. These are what all your childcare and educational support options are at level 4 lockdown for essential and non-essential workers (there are a few!):
If I choose to send my child back to school at their scheduled time as laid out by the DOE:
Children aged 0-4:
There is no information to the reopening of Creche’s and Pre-schools at this stage. These schools fall under the Department of Social Development, and this department has not yet announced anything. We can at this stage only speculate when these kids will be allowed to go back to school, we are advising parents to just account for worst-case scenario, just to be safe.
Recommended Childcare Options for non-essential workers on Level 4:
- Hire a live-in nanny or Early Childhood Development Au Pair on a temporary contract until schools’ resume. Level 4 does not permit live-out childcare workers for non-essential workers. You can move your nanny or Au Pair to a live-out arrangement only if you are considered an essential worker on Level 3, or we are downgraded to level 2.
- Hire a live-in nanny or Early Childhood Development Au Pair on a permanent contract working full day while the kids are still at home, and half day when the kids go back to school.
Recommended Childcare Options for non-essential workers on Level 4:
- Hire a live-in or live-out nanny or Early Childhood Development Au Pair on a temporary contract until schools’ resume. As an L4 essential worker you can choose to have your Au Pair or nanny live-in or live-out, but please be aware that if we are moved back up to level 5 these workers will need to either stay at home or live-in with you.
- Hire a live-in nanny or Early Childhood Development Au Pair on a permanent contract working full day while the kids are still at home, and half day when the kids go back to school.
Children from Grade R-12:
These kids are going to gradually go back to school, starting with the Grade 12’s and 7’s and systematically phasing in each grade every two weeks. Homeschooling will continue to be a reality for a few months for families with younger kids, while catch-up homework loads will quickly replace homeschooling for those with older kids.
Recommended Childcare Options for non-essential workers on level 4:
- Online tutors/homeschool teachers (they can even work online while lockdown restricts at-home engagement and move to face-to-face once lockdown levels permit). Level 4 does not permit live-out childcare workers for non-essential workers. You can move your Tutor/Homeschool Teacher to a live-out arrangement only if you are considered an essential worker on Level 3, or we are downgraded to level 2.
- Live-in tutors/homeschool teachers
Recommended Childcare Options for essential workers on Level 4:
- Online and/or face-face tutors/homeschool teachers. You can hire a tutor/homeschool teacher to work online or face-to-face in your home. As a L4 worker you are allowed to have live-out childcare workers during level 4 lockdown, but please be aware that if we are moved back up to level 5 these workers will need to either stay at home or live-in with you.
- Live-in tutors/homeschool teachers
If I choose to indefinitely postpone my child going back to school:
Children aged 0-4
Our littlies are at the stage of their lives where developmental stimulation is a non-negotiable. We need to keep abreast with their physical, emotional and psychosocial milestones and development, and the right childcare provider can facilitate optimal development at home.
Recommended Childcare Options for Non-essential workers on Level 4:
- Hire a full day live-in Early Childhood Development Au Pair, or hire a nanny during level 4 lockdown. You can move your nanny or Au Pair to a live-out arrangement only if you are considered an essential worker on Level 3, or we are downgraded to level 2 lockdown.
Recommended Childcare Options for Essential workers on level 4:
- Hire a full day live-in or live-out Au Pair during level 4 lockdown. As an L4 essential worker you can choose to have your nanny or Au Pair live-in or live-out, but please be aware that if we are moved back up to level 5 these workers will need to either stay at home or live-in with you.
Children from Grade R-12:
You can choose to purchase a homeschool curriculum that can be taught at home by a tutor or homeschool teacher going forward. We have partnered with a leading virtual school that offers both the South African and British school curriculum from Grade R-12, and they are offering their curriculum to our clients are substantial discounts.
Recommended Childcare Options for Non-Essential workers on level 4:
- Hire a permanent online tutor/homeschool teacher (they can even work online while lockdown restricts at-home engagement and move to face-to-face once lockdown levels permit).
- Live-in tutors/homeschool teachers
Recommended Childcare Options for Essential workers on level 4:
- Hire a permanent online or face-to-face tutor/homeschool teacher. As an L4 essential service worker, you can:
- have your tutor/homeschool teacher come in every day
- choose to continue to exercise social distancing and use the services on an online tutor, who you can move face-to-face when you feel more comfortable
- hire a tutor/homeschool teacher who works face-to-face in your home from the get-go.
- Hire a live-in tutor/homeschool teacher
Au Pair Extraordinaire has been placing Au Pairs, Tutors and Homeschool teachers for the better part of 15 years, and our exciting new service, Teach@Home, will be released to the public next week. This service will offer progressive tech combined with one-one-one online and face-to-face tutors to provide at-home curriculum support for children in Grade R-12.
