【英语趣味课堂】保姆的日常-Au Pair

Todd: So, Layla, we're talking about being an au pair. What is the daily routine¹ of an au pair? Like, what do you do everyday?

 

Layla: So, every day I wake in the morning at seven and I take care of the kids, and get them dressed. I drop them at school. After that I go to my class. I take a class, and English class, and then I pick them at 12:30 at school. And he come back at home, the kid, and he take his nap². After that we go to the park by car, go to the library or until the parents come back from their work.

 

Todd: That's a pretty full-day. So what's the best thing about being an au pair?

 

Layla: The best think for me I think is to meet new people and new culture, new lifestyle, and I think for me it's a very good experience.

 

Todd: Is there anything difficult about being an au pair?

 

Layla: The most difficult I think it to be far from our family because for me it's the first time so it's a little bit hard, but just one year, it's gonna be OK.

 

Todd: So, for an au pair is it your job to like cook and clean and things like that?

 

Layla: Most of the au pairs cooks for the kids and do the laundry³. I don't. But, yeah, usually the au pairs have to clean up after the kids. Do their laundry. Clean up their bedroom, and yeah, taking care of the kids. Yeah.

 

重点词汇：

 

Learn Vocabulary from the Lesson

au pair

 

What is the daily routine of an au pair?

 

An au pair is a young person, usually a woman, who moves to another country to live with a family to take care of their children usually only for a year. Au pair is a French word. The English word is nanny, but that often refers to an older person. Notice the following:

 

We have an au pair from Belgium.

She was an au pair for a year in Holland⁴.

take care of

 

I take care of the kids.

 

When you take care of someone, you look after then. You watch over them and make sure they are protected and in good condition. For example, parents usually take care of their kids, but some bad parents don't. Here are a few examples:

 

I took care of my father as he got older.

Most people like to be taken care of when they are sick.

take his nap

 

He takes his nap in the afternoon.

 

A nap is a short sleep in the daytime. Naps⁵ usually last only a few hours. Children and older people often like to take naps in the afternoon. Notice the following:

 

He was fired for taking a nap at his desk.

As a kid, I hated taking naps, but now I love them.

full

 

That is a pretty full-day.

 

When something is full, that means⁶ there is no space left in it, so a full-day means a day that has no free time in the schedule. Here are a few other uses using the prefix⁷ full-:

 

He has a full-day planned for his day off.

He has a full-schedule all month.

do the laundry

 

I do the laundry and clean the rooms.

 

Laundry is dirty clothes, so when you do the laundry you wash the clothes. However, people usually say 'do the laundry' more often than they say 'wash the clothes'. Notice the following:

 

I love doing the laundry, but I hate ironing⁸.

I usually do my laundry at the laundromat.

1 routine   

n.例行公事，惯例；adj.例行的，常规的

参考例句：

• It is everyday routine.这是每天的例行公事。
• She found the hospital routine slightly dull.她感到医院的工作有点枯燥乏味。

2 nap   

n.(白天)打瞌睡，打盹

参考例句：

• The nap of the coat has been worn off.外衣上的绒毛已经磨掉了。
• Don't bother me while I am taking my nap.我小睡的时候不要打扰我。

3 laundry   

n.洗衣店，洗衣房；已洗好的衣物，待洗衣物

参考例句：

• Please send clothes to the laundry.请把这些衣物送往洗衣店。
• There's a lot of laundry in the basket.筐子里有许多要洗的衣物。

4 Holland   

n.荷兰(欧洲)

参考例句：

• There are many dairies in Holland.荷兰有很多牛奶场。
• Holland is one of Germany's neighbours.荷兰是德国的邻国之一。

5 naps   

n.小睡，打盹( nap的名词复数 )；珠皮呢

参考例句：

• My grandfather naps in his armchair. 我祖父在扶手椅子上小睡。 来自辞典例句
• The baby's regime included two naps a day. 这婴儿的生活规律包括一天小睡两次。 来自辞典例句

6 means   

n.方法，手段，折中点，物质财富

参考例句：

• That man used artful means to find out secrets.那人使用狡猾的手段获取机密。
• We must get it done by some means or other.我们总得想办法把它干完。

7 prefix   

n.前缀；vt.加…作为前缀；置于前面

参考例句：

• We prefix "Mr."to a man's name.我们在男士的姓名前加“先生”。
• In the word "unimportant ","un-" is a prefix.在单词“unimportant”中“un”是前缀。

8 ironing   

n.熨烫；刚熨好的[待熨烫的]衣物v.熨平( iron的现在分词 )；用鱼叉叉（鱼）；用铁铸成；给…加铁具（以使牢固）

参考例句：

• to do the ironing 熨衣服
• I scorched my dress when I was ironing it. 我把自己的连衣裙熨焦了。