Lucy Curtis - English for Au Pairs: The Au Pairs guide to learning English

My head is in an oven. What am I doing here? The oven is very dirty and I am cleaning it. My host mother wants me to clean this dirty oven and also the fridge. It is my first day as an au pair.

I am Marta and I arrived last night at 9pm after a long journey from my home in Poland. My host mother collected me from the airport. She was in a hurry and she said very little in the car.

The children were in bed when I arrived here last night. Now they are on their way to school. I dont know this family and I dont know my way around this house. No one is here and I feel alone.

It is now 9 o clock in the morning and my new life is beginning. I must clean the oven and the fridge. After that, there are more jobs. There is a list on the table. It says:

• load the dishwasher
• hang out the washing
• wash the kitchen floor
• bleach the toilets
• clean the bathrooms
• do the ironing
• dust the furniture
• vacuum all the carpets

My host mother is taking the children to school. My host father works in London. I am still very tired after my long journey here last night. I woke up at 8.30am this morning and there was a note for me from my host mother. It says: We usually get up at 7.15am. I am taking the children to school - back at 1pm. Heres a list of jobs to do this morning.

I am very hungry, so Im looking for something to eat for breakfast. In the fridge there is a pot of yoghurt. Its delicious!

* * * * * * *

It is 1.15pm and my host mother is back. She is not happy with me because I ate her yoghurt. It is her special yoghurt and I must not eat it. She is also angry because the oven is not clean enough. I feel uncomfortable.

It is 3pm and I am still ironing. My host mother is asking me to make a Shepherds Pie for tea. I do not know what Shepherds Pie is. Now she looks angry again and I feel unhappy.

I am in my room and I am phoning the au pair agency. The lady at the agency is kind. I feel upset because the host mother wants me to do heavy-duty cleaning, but my job is to do light housework only. I explain that my host mother doesnt treat me like a member of the family and they do not want me to eat their food!

The lady at the agency understands my problem. She asks me, Do you want to move to another family? I am trying not to cry as I say, Yes, please. The agency is looking for another family for me. I feel so glad!

Useful tips

Use an agency to find your host family. That way, if there is a problem and you need to change families, the agency will be able to help you. The British Au Pair Agencies Association has a list of approved agencies. See www.bapaa.org.uk or www.IAPA.org for further details.

Before you start, make sure you and your host family both agree how many hours you will work each day and what your responsibilities are.

Brush up on your English

Present continuous
Use the present continuous for things which are happening now, at the moment of speaking.
e.g. My host mother is taking the children to school.

Positive form

She is taking the children to school.

Negative form

She isnt (is not) taking the children to school.

Question form

Is she taking the children to school?

Negative question form

Isnt she taking the children to school?

Present simple
Use the present simple for habitual truths.
e.g. My host father works in London.

Positive form

He works in London.

Negative form

He doesnt (does not) work in London.

Question form

Does he work in London?

Negative question form

Doesnt he work in London?

Some verbs never or rarely take the continuous form. These are verbs which describe states as opposed to actions. State verbs relate to:

mental and emotional states - love, hate, prefer, think, understand, remember, feel, know, believe, suppose.

senses - see, smell, hear, taste, feel.

communications and causing reactions - look (seem), agree, disagree, deny, mean, promise, surprise, satisfy, astonish, impress, please.

possession and other verbs - be, belong, need, have, contain, fit, include, measure, owe, own, possess, want, weigh.