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I am looking for someone to pick my 8 yer old daughter up from school and look after her in my home for 3.5 hours, 10 days a month for the next two months. I have no idea what to offer to pay for this service. What is fair? Right now I pay $17.50 to the school day care plus $50 a month for days I don't use.
Also, does anyone have a list of necessary interview questions? I have never interviewed for an in-home position before.
I would say at very least, minimum wage. Personally, I wouldn't do it for less than $15/hr. It may seem steep, but if you want a professional provider, this is reasonable. Yes, before and after school care in a home daycare or facility is cheaper, because the providers are able to bring in more children, thereby making enough money to make it worthwhile. Of course, this is just my perspective. Others may feel differently.
I think you would likely want to know about her experience, particularly with this age group. What kind of activities would she be doing with your daughter? Television time? What happens if your child or the provider is ill? I've been out of the in-home care business for a long, long time, but these are things I would expect to be asked.
A lot depends on if you are looking for an actual provider or if you are looking for a teen to come in after school which would probably be your cheapest way to go. A provider is limited in the number of children they can care for so you would be paying for a space regardless of how much you used it - similar to the daycare program.
Since you are looking for evening hours you would also do better to consider a high school student as most providers don't work past about 6:00pm because we start so early in the morning.
Start by thinking about the fee you pay to whoever looks after your daughter now when you go out for an evening. Consider asking that person if she could do the job and if not if she has a friend that might be interested.