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Children benefit greatly from an active day with lots of stimulation. They learn through experience, so it is important to provide them with as many hands-on activities as possible, even if you are leaving them in the care of a babysitter. Many babysitters or nannies are great at providing stimulating activities, but if your sitter is young or inexperienced, then he/she may need some guidance.

The first thing to do is ensure that your babysitter knows where all of the child-friendly things are in the house. Often a babysitter doesn't want to snoop through your drawers to see if there is a great game tucked away, so your child loses out on the chance. Showing your babysitter where the paints and building blocks are kept is a must.

Secondly, make sure that you let your babysitter know that you want your children to have as much learning time as possible. Tell them that giving your child the chance to learn is much more important than coming home to a spotless house. This way your caregiver will know that it's fine to get out the paints or mess up the kitchen with some baking.

It's also a good idea to organize play-dates for the times that you are out. Children learn through interaction with each other as much as with adults, so having a get-together with friends is great stimulation. Especially if you have a regular, full-time babysitter, these opportunities break the routine, and keep the babysitter inspired to organize activities.

Finally, encourage your babysitter to take the kids out of the house. If you have passes to the zoo, the museum, or other local child-friendly attractions, then suggest those activities to the babysitter.

As long as you let your babysitter know that learning is your priority, and that you trust him or her with the leaway to arrange whatever activity will best promote it, then you ensure the time your child spends with the babysitter will be stimulating.

Learn more about this author, Krista White.
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