Useless nanny?

[Wistala]

One of my families has twin girl toddlers. Usually I'll send them to daycare while their parents are at work, but I decided to do something different and hire a nanny. Both mom and dad work long hours, so the nanny was there for many hours. And she was astoundingly useless. The only good thing I can say is that not enough time passed for the toddlers to get taken away.
Here's what she did:
-When she first arrived, she helped one of the girls use the potty chair.
- She chatted with the other girl for a minute and then went into the living room.
- She watched tv for several hours before getting herself some food.
- Watched TV for a little longer before going upstairs and played chess.
- Finally took a nap on the couch until the parents got home.

It was funny but frustrating. The parents came home to very cranky toddlers.

[Nindigo]

I think there is general consent on this forum that nannies and maids are pretty useless. Only comfort is that you're not alone with your frustration

[MarianT]

Sometimes they're very good, and sometimes they're terrible -- just the way they were in TS2 and 3.

[oshizu]

My last nanny was really outstanding.

The trick to getting good work out of nannies is to have your toddlers constantly ask the nanny to help them.
Toddlers can ask a nanny to show flash cards (Thinking or Communication), teach blocks (Thinking or Movement), read a book or play with dollhouse (both Imagination), give a bath, give food or drink, help with potty, teach dance, and so forth.
However, if the toddler doesn't ask, the nanny may not do nothing. I found nannies useless with nooboos but toddlers can get adults to do so much for them!

[Nindigo]

@oshizu Controlling toddlers constantly to make them ask for help would seriously deter from my gaming experience. It's like trying to make up for what the developers failed to make function properly

[Playalot]

I guess it is all about how you like to play. I control my toddlers all the time. It's the easiest way to skill them up even when they have a good relationship with the parents or caregivers.

[oshizu]

@Nindingo
Well, you don't have to "constantly" micro-manage the toddlers, but I'm not sure what level of "helpful nanny" you're seeking.
I like that I can decide how much I want the nanny to do and when I just let the toddlers "free range."

[coolsim9999999]

I choose activities for my toddlers to skill up quickly, but they always enjoy the skilling toys and other was to skill.  Also, if a nanny is there, the toddler could ask the nanny for stuff, as well as use the tablet.

[Nindigo]

Oh, I absolutely enjoy controlling the toddlers and mine, too, often use their skill toys or talk. But I usually keep a stay-at-home parent instead of hiring a nanny. It seems to work better when it comes to caring for toddler needs Plus, I don't get to feel I paid for nothing.

I may be particularly incompetent at multitasking, but since I have aging disabled, I take my precious time getting everybody to level up skills. Working against the clock is enough for me in real life

[Playalot]

I absolutely never hire a nanny, ever. I haven't even hired one to test it out in TS4 lol. Nannies have always been useless in The Sims. The Butler, however, is a different story. He/she is particularly good this time around. I don't hire one as a general rule as I like the chaos of playing with a full household but the one I play tested was brilliant.