If you are an au pair you have probably arrived in London not only because you love travelling and always wanted to live in London, but also to learn and improve your English. Hence, working in London as an au pair is like killing two birds with one stone, you get to know London and become fluent in English. However, it is not as easy as it seemed, there are restrictions and more often than not these restrictions relate to money and time!
Although you have been living in London, you don’t seem to speak English to many people, you have a relatively limited audience such as the kids, host parents and maybe a few other au pairs. You start feeling like you are stuck and can’t learn anything more. You seem to understand your host-parents and kids as they have learnt the way to communicate with you, but when you go out, it is like a totally new world where people speak a different language and you can barely understand their accent.
And this is the exact reason why you should join an English course. This will allow you to expand your vocabulary, you will practise and learn new grammar and listen to differentiate various English accents.
Great, so you have just realised there is an English school in your area, you went there to talk about the different course options they have and to your disappointment, you found out that their price list is way above your budget. You’re not in a position to ask your parents for help because now you are a grown-up, you have got a job and you earn money. Having said that, you earn peanuts, and realistically you can’t afford to pay for the lessons out of your own pocket. So why don’t you ask your host family to contribute to the course? The thought of it might be filling you with fear and shame, but what’s the worst thing that can happen? They might say ‘No’, and that’s ok. At least you’ve tried. But if your host-parents are a tiny bit decent they might actually help you out. So what to say (or write) to your parents to get them to pay for half of your English course. Here you’ve got a few messages
- Dear host parents, I know you’ve been really busy these days, so I thought that instead of having a conversation I could write to you. I need your help, please. So, you probably remember when we first spoke about me coming over to London, I told you that I really love kids and my aim is to improve my English. I’ve got a great time looking after Mike and Molly (names of kids) but what I definitely miss are English classes. In the last few weeks I was trying to find an inexpensive English school to join a course, but it’s really difficult to find one that I could afford. The cheapest course I’ve found is in Wood Green, the whole course fee is £450 (that’s 8-week course, classes 3 days a week). I can only afford half of the fee, would you be able to help me and contribute to the other half, please? Thanks, Maria
- Dear Tim and Sam (names of your host parents), I know you’re really busy, so I thought I’d write a message. I just wanted to say that I’m really happy living with you and looking after Mike and Molly (name of kids), however, I feel like I’m not improving my English, for that reason I want to start an English course. There’s a really good timetable for au pairs in a school in Muswell Hill, but the problem is the fee. English courses are quite expensive and I can’t afford to pay the whole fee. I was hoping you could help me and contribute a part towards the course fee. The total price of an 8-week course is £450 and I have £250 saved up. Let me know what you think, please. Thanks, Maria
- Dear Mike and Sam (names of your host parents), I really find it difficult to save enough money and pay for my dream English course. Is there any chance that you could contribute financially towards the course fee, please? The total amount is £450, I managed to save up £250, so £200 is still remaining. Please let me know if you can help. Thanks, Maria.
Hope that helps.
Let me know how effective the messages were and whether you managed to find an English course, if not, get in touch, I might be able to help.
