Ages 9–12 · Brooklyn
The age that thinks it's old enough to be alone.
By 10 your kid is telling you they don't need a sitter. They're wrong, and also kind of right. What they need isn't babysitting — it's a responsible adult in the house who can help with homework, start dinner, and say no to the third hour of screen time.
Homework is the unlock
Becky walked 25+ students through their schoolwork as a tutor. Shelly worked elementary and middle-school subjects. This is where the tween booking works best — the kid does homework with actual help, not nagging. Reading comprehension, math sets, the essay they've been avoiding.
Parents often book us specifically for the homework block — 3 to 6, three afternoons a week, with dinner prep rolled in. See after-school care.
Tween session dynamics
Screen-time boundaries
Whatever limits you've set, we hold. The kid will test — that's literally their developmental job — and a recurring sitter holds the line better than a new one. Third session in, they stop asking.
Social gray zone
Tweens want to text friends, invite someone over, walk to the bodega themselves. We follow your rules — whatever you've said yes to, we say yes to; whatever you haven't, we don't improvise.
Younger-sibling dynamic
When there's a younger sibling in the house, the tween doesn't get to play assistant sitter. We handle both kids directly so the tween isn't on duty during their own free time.