Babysitting no longer is a trade learned by watching younger siblings — it’s a craft taught in a class.

Safe Sitter is an international baby-sitting program now offered at Kishwaukee Community Hospital.

The next two-day session will be held from 8:30 a.m. until noon this Saturday and next Saturday, Oct. 18. Parents must register their children and there is only room for 16 people. The cost is $50 per student.

The course is designed to teach 11- to 13-year-olds the skills needed to take care of young children and infants, said Jo Jaskula, KCH’s community education coordinator.

“Safe Sitter is a baby-sitting preparation program that teaches childcare and safety techniques,” said Laurie Chilton, a community wellness nurse educator at the hospital, who also teaches the course. “We show them how to diaper and feed infants and toddlers, and also what is appropriate food for specific ages.”

Other skills taught are how to properly hold a child, the Heimlich maneuver for children over 1 year of age, preventing problem behavior and injury management.

“We also teach them how to get baby-sitting jobs and how to relate to adults when trying to get a job,” Chilton said.

The Safe Sitter program was founded in 1980 by Dr. Patricia A. Keener.

“It is a non-profit organization that she developed after a nurse’s child came into the emergency room who choked to death while in the care of a sitter who could not help,” Chilton said.

Safe Sitter program instructors have to go through training by the Safe Sitter organization.

“It entails a full-day training seminar on how to teach Safe Sitter, along with other requirements,” Chilton said.

At the end of the course, kids receive a certificate of completion, a babysitting manual, a key chain and a backpack to take on babysitting jobs, Jaskula said.

Chilton said the situation benefits everyone involved.

“The children in the course leave feeling more confident with the infants and children they’re watching. And parents benefit because they can feel comfortable leaving their child with someone who has been trained.”

For more information on Safe Sitter or to register, call Jo Jaskula at 756-1521, ext. 4000.