Although many people use the terms au pair and nanny interchangeably, there are important differences between these two types of caregivers.
Here are the top 5 differences between an au pair and a nanny:
Stay tuned for next Tuesday’s Top 5!
I
ce Skating at Wrigley—Rink at Wrigley
Wednesday, February 15
7pm.
$5.00 to Skate
$5.00 skate rental
Let’s meet at McDonalds across the street from Wrigley
3620 N Clark St(773) 549-0683
Au Pair Weekend Program
Continuing Education
Au Pair Program at NLU
National-Louis University » Au Pair Weekend Program » Au Pair - Chicago
Welcome
Course Descriptions
Coursework Requirements
Course Schedule
Au Pair - Boston
Au Pair - Chicago
Au Pair - Washington DC
Registration
Faculty & Staff
Testimonials
Contact Information
Margaret Stemler
Director of Continuing Education
National-Louis University
aupair.classes@nl.edu
847-905-8018
Au Pair Weekend Program in Chicago
COURSE SCHEDULE - CHICAGO
Course #A: (Course A ONLY)
American Dreams: You and Your Community (up to 45 hours) will be offered January 13-15, 2012. Course A will be offered again in July 2012. Schedule to be announced.
Course #B: (Course B ONLY)
American Dreams: USA and Chicago in a Nutshell (up to 45 hours) will be offered April 13-15, 2012. Course B will be offered again in October 2012. Schedule to be announced.
Course #A & B: (Course A then Course B)
American Dreams: The Community & USA (up to 90 hours) will be offered once during fall 2011 for students who want to take both Course A and Course B. Students can enroll for the following dates: January 13-15, 2012 (Course A) paired with April 13-15, 2012 (Course B). The Course A & B combination will be offered again in 2012. Schedule to be announced.
Au Pair Weekend Program - Chicago Schedule
COURSES &
MEETING DATES
REGISTRATION DEADLINE & COST
LATE REGISTRATION
DATES & COST
Course Meeting Dates:
January 13-15, 2012
NLU Course #A:
Course A ONLY (45 hrs)
American Dreams: You and Your Community
Registration Deadline: December 23, 2011
$295 Class Tuition + $40 Materials/Activity Fees
Material/Activity Fees will be collected on the first day of class.
Late Registration Dates: December 24 - 30, 2011
$295 + $50 late fee = $345 Course Tuition + $40 Materials/Activity Fees
Registrations will ONLY be accepted after December 30, 2011 based on space availability.
Course Meeting Dates:
April 13-15, 2012
NLU Course #B:
Course B ONLY (45 hrs)
American Dreams: USA and Chicago in a Nutshell
Registration Deadline: March 13, 2012
$295 Class Tuition + $40 Materials/Activity Fees
Material/Activity Fees will be collected on the first day of class.
Late Registration Dates: March 14 - 30, 2012
$295 + $50 late fee = $345 Class Tuition + $40 Materials/Activity Fees
Registrations will ONLY be accepted after March 30, 2012 based on space availability.
Course Meeting Dates:
January 13-15, 2012 &
April 13-15, 2012
NLU Courses #A & B :
Courses A &B (90 hrs)
American Dreams: The Community & USA
Registration Deadline: December 23, 2011
$500 Class Tuition + $70 Materials/Activity Fees
Material/Activity Fees will be collected on the first day of class.
Late Registration Dates: December 24 - 30, 2011
$500 + $50 late fee = $550 Class Tuition + $70 Materials/Activity Fees
Registrations will ONLY be accepted after December 30, 2011 based on space availability.
CLASS MEETING SCHEDULE
The class schedule for each weekend is listed below:
Fridays: 3:45-9:45 pm (Check-in is 3:30-4:00 p.m.)
Saturdays: 8:30 am -7:30 pm
Sundays: 9:00 am -5:00 pm
Please note that class times are always the same for each weekend in Chicago. Attendance is mandatory during the times listed above.
COURSE COST
COURSE A OR B Registration: Tuition for one course only is $295, and is registered for and paid on-line. Dinner on Friday and lunch on Saturday OR Sunday (not both) are included in the cost and will be provided by National Louis University.
Please note: An additional $40 materials and activity fee is collected at check-in on the 1st class day.
COURSE A AND B Registration: Take advantage of the great savings by registering for both courses at the same time. Tuition for both courses (A and B, in either order) of the program is $500 (if registered at the same time).
Please note: An additional $70 materials and activity fee is collected at check-in on the 1st class day that will cover both courses.
REGISTRATION
Online Registration: You can only register for the Au Pair Weekend courses through National Louis University’s secure online registration system. Payment must be made in full before a student can be registered for one or both courses.
National Louis University accepts Visa, MasterCard, Discover and American Express credit cards.
To register for any of the CHICAGO course options, please click this registration link and follow directions:
http://www.regonline.com/aupairprogram
After successfully registering for the course you will receive an email that will provide all the instructions you will need to complete your pre-assignments. If you DO NOT receive an email within two days of registering for a course, it is your responsibility to email Chicago.Weekend@nl.edu and ask for the pre-assignment instructions.
LOCATION /DIRECTIONS
National Louis University
122 S. Michigan Avenue
Chicago, IL 60603
The campus is situated across the street from the Art Institute of Chicago, near Millennium Park. The campus is easily accessible by train, bus and car.
Major Intersections: On Michigan Avenue and Adams Street across from the Art Institute of Chicago.
Public Transportation: Take public transportation to NLU Chicago.
Driving Directions: Google Maps provides specific driving directions.
Parking: There are a number of convenient parking options available:
Convenient and security-patrolled 24-hour parking is located in the Millennium Park, Grant Park North, Grant Park South and East Monroe Street underground garages. For rates, directions and other information please visit www.millenniumgarages.com, or call 312.616.0600.
The garages are easily accessed from North Michigan Avenue (south of Randolph), South Michigan Avenue (north of Congress Parkway), and Lower Columbus Avenue (south of Randolph). For driving directions to the parking garages, please call 312.616.0600.
Grant Park South Lot:
Location: 325 South Michigan Avenue (.18 miles)
On foot to NLU: Head north on Michigan (towards east Jackson St.) You will see the campus located on the left hand side across from the Chicago Art Institute.
55 East Monroe Street Parking Garage:
Location: 55 East Monroe Street
On foot to NLU: Head west on east Monroe Street (toward south Columbus Drive).
Go left on south Michigan Avenue. You will see the campus located on the left hand side across from the Chicago Art Institute.
ADDITIONAL PARKING OPTIONS:
You can also check this website for additional parking options:
http://chicagoparkingmap.com/map_dynamic.jsp
HOUSING
Housing IS NOT provided or arranged for students who attend a weekend course. However, we can refer you to Hostelling International Chicago which is a short walk to campus.
To reserve a space at the special rate of $28 per person per night for a bed in a shared dorm visit the website www.hichicago.org and enter the promo code AUPA when booking. You can also call the front desk to reserve space at 312-360-0300.
CONTACT
Please email us at Chicago.Weekend@nl.edu with any questions, or call 847-905-8018 (email preferred).
Cultural Care Au Pair cannot give specific recommendations or advice about taxes so please consult your tax professional for personalized information about filing your income taxes. Below is a resource for au pairs and host families about taxes. More information can be found in your Cultural Care Au Pair Host Family or Au Pair Account.
Important Au Pair Tax Information
Important Host Family Tax Information
Posted by: vbellisbrouk | December 10, 2011 |
When the weather changes and you need some indoor activities for the kids, why not hit the kitchen! Baking cookies with your children should be fun. Keep the following tips in mind when you’re ready to get started. Be sure to share your own country’s holiday recipes as well!
Kid-Friendly Cookie Recipes
One of the best tips for baking Christmas cookies with kids is a simple one: choose easy, kid-friendly recipes. Now is not the time to try your hand at that complicated recipe that you just discovered in the latest issue of Gourmet magazine. Think fun and festive, not frustrating.
More great cookie recipes to make and bake together:
- Snowman Cookies (donut holes dipped in white frosting)
- Red-Nosed Reindeer Cookies (store-bought cookie dough decorated with chocolate-covered pretzels and red M&M’s)
- Santa Grahams (graham crackers, mini marshmallows, and red gumdrops are all part of this no-bake cookie)
- Holiday Snickerdoodles (easy to make from scratch, and even easier when you use a Betty Crocker mix)
- Classic Sugar Cookies (use holiday cookie cutters and let the kids go wild decorating with candy, frosting, and sprinkles
Cultural Care au pairs in Stamford gather together to decorate a tree for the Junior League of Greenwich’s Enchanted Forest holiday fundraiser.
Many au pairs travel to the U.S. with the notion that Americans are big on celebrating the holidays. And according to the ones we’ve heard from, thais stereotype rings very true.
Lee Anna Whitely, Local Program Director for Cultural Care Au Pair recently invited her group of au pairs to help decorate a holiday tree to support the local Junior League. During the event, she asked au pairs to give their take on what they think so far about the 2011 holiday season. Rikard Kreuger, an au pair from Sweden, said, “I didn’t expect that much at Halloween, but it was a big deal. There were so many decorations at my house - decorations inside, decorations outside, decorations everywhere.” Another male au pair, Daniel Prozmann from Germany, shared. “We know the holidays mostly from the movies, you think it must be really exaggerated on TV, but it really is kind of like that.”
The American tradition of holiday-mania can actually be very helpful to au pairs prone to homesickness as it keeps the focus off of what is going on back home. Host families can also ease au pairs’ homesickness by including them in their traditions and encouraging them to share their own. Says Rachel Friedman, host mom to Colombian au pair Veronica Aristizábal, “It’s always hard to be away from your family this time of year, we’re doing what we can to make it special, we consider Veronica part of our family. It’s important for our kids to experience a different language, a different culture - but we get to share our culture too, it’s a different twist. It’s just a smorgasbord of events and holidays this time of year.”
Au pairs: what holiday traditions will you share with your host families this year? Host families: what American traditions are you most excited to share with your au pair during the upcoming holiday?
by Kids First
Face painting at the Cultural Care Au Pair booth at the SWEA Fair and Holiday Celebration
Nine staff members from the Cultural Care office in Cambridge, MA made their way to the Cyclorama building in the South End of Boston this past Saturday to attend the SWEA Yuletide Fair and to face paint and make balloon animals in order to raise money for Kids First. The Cultural Care booth was a huge hit with children lining up to have Swedish dala horses, tomtes and flags on their cheeks and to request a balloon.
Altogether, $148 was raised for Kid First (yay!) and at least a handful of parents were interested in learning more about hosting an au pair. Thanks to all of our staff who volunteered!
Are you looking for just the right thing to put under the tree for your au pair? We asked some host parents to share their ideas for au pair gift-giving this holiday season and this is what they came up with…
1. Personalized gifts with kids photos
Chicago Mom on aupairmom.com says: “Urban Outfitters had blank snow globes last year where you could slip in two pictures-one on each side-so for a Christmas gift, I slipped in a picture of our house decorated for the holidays (of the outside, complete with the fallen snow and bows and lights), and a picture of the kids on the other side. [Our au pair] loved this (snow globes seemed the rage with her and the other au pairs - they don’t have many of these in Bolivia I guess).” You can also choose to create a photo book or frame her favorite photo.
2. Tickets to a local game or show
Lots of au pairs would love to experience a local game or show but won’t spend the money themselves to get there. Two tickets from you (so she can take a friend) is usually much appreciated. Says one host mom online: “We live in the NYC area, so we always splurge and give our au pairs two tickets to a Broadway show. Everybody loves this. I got the idea from a very experienced host mother with whom I work.”
3. Gift cards
While not very personal, gift cards are certainly practical and appreciated by au pairs who would love to do more shopping. “I either give a spa gift certificate or an iTunes gift card,” writes Annette McGloin, veteran host mom and Cultural Care staff member, when asked about her gift-giving traditions. Starbucks, Gap and iTunes are also safe bets.
4. Popular book series
A host parent who doesn’t want to be named (in case her au pair is reading!) will introduce her au pair to the Twilight Saga Collection this year. She says her former au pairs have appreciated young adult books because it helps them improve their English comprehension skills at the same time. Two other good ones to consider: the Hunger Games and the Lorien Legacies Series.
5. Warm winter gear
Au pairs who live with host families that get cold weather are rarely outfitted with the proper gear to keep them warm. Jenny Berryman Horne, a host mom from MA says, “We gave our au pair gloves and a scarf last year since she was from a warm country and needed them. We may do this again, too, as a stocking stuffer.” Ines Cortes, another host mom in MA shares, “Our gift to her will be something she has wanted but found too expensive: a down winter coat. She suffered a bit last winter, and knowing our son
Julian, she will be outside quite a bit and needs to be warm.” For hats, boot cuffs and cowls, I like what Kitty Dune on Etsy has to offer. I also love this hat from Prana (so cozy!) and the new gloves from Agloves that work with touchscreen cell phones. Lastly, this 100% down coat by DKNY is on sale.
6. Slippers/pajamas
Since sizing and taste is more forgiving in the case of sleepwear, it’s often a safer gift for au pairs. Susan Robinson, our Au Pair Answer Mom agrees: “Anyone can use another pair of pjs!” These slippers from Urban Outfitters are very cool and inexpensive, and pajamas from Aerie are notoriously soft and in-style.
7. An extra suitcase
If you’re after a gift that you know your au pair will use, it doesn’t get any more practical than an extra suitcase or duffle. She’s going to need it to get all of her stuff back home at the end of the year! This rolling duffle by LLBean is a great option.
8. Jewelry
It might normally be risky to give au pair jewelry, but Alex and Ani bracelets are a sure thing. They are inexpensive, made out of recycled materials and all the rage right now with young women. The best part is that each bracelet has a different symbol or expression like: Statue of Liberty, “Thank you”, “Pursue happiness”, lucky clover.
9. Travel guides
Is your au pair planning a trip somewhere fun? A travel guide book is a great gift option. Says Samantha Janney-a host mom and Cultural Care staff member-”We have typically given our au pairs a guide book for a trip they’re planning and they love it.” Lonely Planet and Frommer’s books are good choices.
10. Stocking and/or ornament
If everyone in your household has a stocking, your au pair should absolutely have one, too! (Just listen to what AuPairMom has to say about this.) Ornaments are also a popular gift according to Cultural Care Au Pair’s online community. Personalized stockings from Pottery Barn seem to be popular, and this personalized ornament is adorable.
Hopefully this post will give all of you host parents out there some things to consider for au pair gifts this holiday season!
International au pairs celebrating Thanksgiving!
Amy Brian, a Cultural Care Au Pair LCC in Delaware, invited her group of au pairs over to her house to participate in an early Thanksgiving celebration this past weekend. She says: “The au pairs all chose a recipe that reminded them of home-it could be a traditional ethnic dish, but it could just be anything that they would typically eat back home with their families and friends.
They all shared some delicious starters, main dishes and desserts including Brazilian Ground Beef Pie and Chicken Fricassee and German Schupfnudeln (potato noodles).
The recipes are included below. We suggest bringing a little international flair to your Thanksgiving table this season!
Ground Beef Pie from Brazil
INGREDIENTS:
Dough
Put everything in the blender, first the liquids, flour bit by bit, and at last baking powder. Add more milk if necessary. The dough has to be almost liquid.
Stuffing
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. In a pot, cook the ground beef, put salt, pepper, oregano, let it cool. Mix the onions, tomatoes, peas and corn. In a greased baking pan, pour half of the dough, place all the stuffing over the dough carefully and cover it with the rest of the half dogh left. Put in the oven for about 45-60 min.
Schupfnudeln from Germany
This dish is typical of the southwest region of Germany and this particular version comes from an old family recipe.
INGREDIENTS:
DIRECTIONS:
You have to cook the potatoes and let them cool. When they’re cool you can grate/shape them.Mix everything together. You have to do it with your hands till it’s a good dough. Put flour in your hands and form these noodles.
After you formed them you can put them in boiling water with salt. They will sink and later they will come to the top of the water. Let them stay there for 5 more minutes and then you can take them out of the water. Put it into cold water. After you can roast it gently in a pan.
And you need white cabbage. You cut it very small up. Put it in a bowl and put salt on it. You have to knead it till it’s softer. Then you put it in a pot and let it cook. You have to keep an eye on it, so that it won’t get black. And after you cooked it, you can put the noodles together with the cabbage.
Chicken Fricassee from Brazil
Although this is not traditionally Brazilian, it is a common dish that is prepared there.
INGREDIENTS:
DIRECTIONS:
Saute chicken and sausage in a large skillet for 4 to 5 minutes. Remove meat from skillet, add green onions and onion and saute until soft. Set aside.
To make roux: In a small saucepan stir together oil and flour over low heat; cook until color is caramel and mixture is reduced to 1 cup of roux. Set aside.
Put water in a large pot. Add the chicken, sausage, onion mixture, celery, seasoning, cayenne pepper, salt, ground black pepper and garlic. Bring all to a boil and cook for 20 minutes. Add 1/2 cup roux and stir together; the mixture should have the consistency of chowder. If necessary, add the remaining 1/2 cup roux.
Reduce heat to medium low and simmer uncovered for 2 hours, stirring occasionally. Serve hot over rice, if desired.
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