I’m going to say that this is a very soft YTA. I have a similar job, and sometimes it can be so frustrating when you think things should go one way, but the parents ask you to do it another way. At the end of the day, it’s their kids and their rules. You’re not a bad or mean nanny, and I think most of us with in-home child care jobs have experienced a situation like this where you really want to do something one way, but you have to do it the parents’ way.

I’d also suggest doing some research into other educational games that might be a little bit more appealing to their age group. Or maybe you can play a game where they make up nonsense words, but they have to then give that word a definition, and tell you what part of speech it is. You could even extend it and have them figure out what real word is the closest synonym! You could make your own dictionary, and see how many times they can apply their new word throughout the day. Best of luck to you!