Shirelle W.

Education

Otis College of Art & Design,
BFA in Fashion Design & Illustration

Professional Childcare Experience

Full-time Nanny
New York, NY, 03/23 - 10/23
Age 4 months

Full-time Nanny
Montclair, NJ, 09/21 - 01/23
Age 13 months

Full-time Nanny
New York & Glen Ridge, NY & NJ, 04/14 - 09/21
Ages 4 months & a newborn 2 years later

Full-time Nanny
New York & Hong Kong, NY & Hong Kong SAR, 01/08 - 11/13
Ages 4 months & a newborn a year later

Part-time Nanny
New York, NY, 08/06 - 01/08
Ages 4 and 6 years

Childcare Director/Cabin Counselor
Los Angeles, CA, 06/96 - 08/99
Ages 5 months to 12 years

Full-time Caregiver
Tewksbury, MA, 01/91 - 08/94
Ages 2 years and 4 months

Other Experience

Assistant Language Teacher
Yokohama, JAPAN, 07/02 - 08/04

About me

I grew up outside Boston with my older brother in a very big extended family. I've always had an affinity with babies and small children, even as a small child myself. My mother ran a daycare out of our home when I was young, so I was changing diapers by the time I was 5 years old and began babysitting my younger cousins and neighborhood children while still in elementary school. I have a varied and extensive background in childcare and education as I have worked with infants and children of all ages in one capacity or another for most of my life.

I am an attachment-focused, loving, creative, multi-lingual, and energetic nanny with almost 20 years of experience in the New York Metro area, northern New Jersey, & Hong Kong as well as 2 years teaching English in Japan (Kawasaki/Yokohama areas). After some years away post-college, I came back to childcare via nannying in NYC in 2006. Since then, I've worked mainly with newborns of first-time parents and continued care as other siblings came along. In addition to standard infant care duties, I use ASL to help babies communicate, make all baby food from scratch, and have successfully practiced infant pottying (aka Elimination Communication) with my work babies since 2014. I've traveled domestically and internationally with children and relocated to Hong Kong and northern NJ to continue supporting families. Currently, I am gaining certification as an Infant Sleep Specialist with a program based on current sleep science, normal infant development, and Attachment Theory (no Cry-It-Out method!), and I can't wait to share this wealth of knowledge with a new family.

I believe in creating a warm, supportive environment where children feel comfortable expressing themselves and are at ease trying new things. Every day should be a new learning experience. I want children to be excited about life and the world around them. I have a strong passion for the arts (drawing, painting, sewing, singing, making music, etc.) including a BFA degree in fashion design, and this is something that I love to share with the children in my care. I enjoy using my strengths and talents to help children develop to their fullest potential.

I have professional child care experience with...

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    Infants
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    Toddlers
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    Preschoolers
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    School-aged (K-5)
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    Teenagers
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    Multiples
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    Special Needs

In 5 years, I hope to be...

Still working and growing with an amazing nanny family. Hopefully building a small business as a Baby-Led Sleep and Wellness Specialist to offer sleep-deprived families a more holistic, developmentally appropriate approach to their baby's sleep needs/issues and a wider range of options outside of the popular (but ultimately misguided) Cry-It-Out techniques. I'd also like to become certified as a lactation consultant to help families navigate that whole range of challenges.

Activities & skills I love to teach & share with children...

Anything and everything to do with the arts! I play music and sing pretty much all the time. I love bringing babies to visit museums so that they grow up always knowing art & culture, as well as knowing how to conduct themselves in those settings. I'm an avid reader and love to encourage a love of books and reading with all the children in my care. My work babies and I very quickly become regular fixtures at all the nearest local libraries, and I tend to get the inside scoop on upcoming library programs or cool stuff happening in the community. I'm also a big proponent of getting outside every single day. I make sure that we're all dressed appropriately for the weather and have whatever we might need for safety and comfort. It's important for children to know their community & neighborhood, and also get out into nature to get fresh air, stimulation, get their bodies moving, and develop their motor & social skills. I'm conversational in American Sign Language (ASL) and I love bringing this skill set to work with me. Having a pre-verbal infant or toddler who can communicate even a fraction of their needs/wants/discomforts to the adults around them is invaluable and can really save your sanity as an adult trying to get insight into a child's world. I've also practiced infant pottying (aka Elimination Communication) with all of my work babies since 2014. I know it sounds a bit kooky to the uninitiated, but it's a lot easier than one might think! I've found it to be incredibly convenient for day-to-day babying as well as making the transition to potty independence in toddlerhood a non-issue. In infancy, it also adds a whole other layer of communication and understanding between babies and the adults around them.