sueannesaurus

Monday, September 11, 2006

Nanny

A nanny is defined as a child's nurse. The traditional nanny was a servant in a large household and reported directly to the lady of the house. Nannies were always female and this remained the case through the 20th Century. This role currently stands firmly as a sector of early childhood education.The nanny in a great house ran her own tiny domain, supported by at least one nursery maid. Because of their role in child care, they were somewhat more indulged than junior servants. Nannies may have remained in the employ of the same aristocratic family for years, looking after successive generations of children.

Today, although many families employ part-time babysitters, fulltime nannies in the classic sense can only be afforded by upper-middle to upper class families.Typically, girls and women in the 20 to 30 age bracket take up employment as nannies. Some are younger. In many poorer countries, many teenage girls also work as nannies. Nannies typically earn low salaries. Sometimes the employer requires their nanny/nannies to wear a uniform. This happened often earlier during the 20th century, but since the 1990s many nannies instead can wear clothes that are comfortable for their work. A nanny uniform can include a dress or blouse and skirt.