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This story is part of a series about childcare providers caring for children during nontraditional hours, including early mornings, nights and weekends.

Sharon Jackson, a longtime home-based childcare provider in Millbrook, Alabama, cares for infants and toddlers every weekday from 6 a.m. to 4 p.m. In the evenings, she reopens her program, extending her hours as late as 11 p.m. to care for children whose families need extra support. 

And at least one weekend per month, she provides all-day care to several children whose parents have to report for duty at the Maxwell Air Force Base in Montgomery, Alabama.

Jackson is also licensed to provide overnight care, which she does occasionally as needed. 

Through these unconventional arrangements, Jackson provides 鈥渘ontraditional hour care,鈥� and as her schedule suggests, it can take a lot of different forms. Nontraditional hour care is a poorly understood yet widely sought form of early care and education, generally defined as any care being provided before 7 a.m. and after 6 p.m. on weekdays, and any hours on the weekends. 

It鈥檚 estimated that about 40% of children under age 6 with working parents spend at least part of their week in childcare during nontraditional hours, according to a from the Urban Institute, a social policy research nonprofit. The report, which analyzed household survey data from the National Survey of Early Care and Education, found this type of care to be more common among children from low-income families or in single-parent or non-parent households, as well as infants and toddlers. 

Families have a diverse range of circumstances and needs when it comes to care, especially working families with young kids. Sometimes, one parent can cover while the other works, or a relative such as a grandparent can step in to help. But in other cases, families must seek more formal arrangements. That鈥檚 where providers like Jackson and Desiree Reid come in.

Reid has been a licensed home-based childcare provider in the Bronx for about a decade. Before that, though, she had a long career as a financial manager 鈥� a role that required her to work late into the night and on weekends at times. In other words, Reid needed childcare during nontraditional hours before she became a childcare provider herself. Back then, when her son was still very young, she鈥檇 scrap together help from her mother and godmother during the week, and on the weekends, she鈥檇 take him to work with her and they鈥檇 hole up in her office. 

So when Reid opened her own childcare program and realized a lot of her families were doing shift work and needed flexible hours, she found herself adjusting her schedule. 

鈥淎t first it started with maybe one parent saying, 鈥極h, Ms. Desiree, I have to work till 8:30 tonight,鈥欌�� Reid recalled. 鈥淲hat am I gonna do? Say, 鈥榣eave your job, come get your kid and figure it out?鈥� No. So I extended my hours.鈥�

The vast majority of nontraditional hour care is provided in homes, through a mix of licensed and unlicensed caregivers. Data varies, but across multiple sources, unlicensed care 鈥� and particularly unpaid unlicensed care 鈥� is the most used nontraditional hour childcare arrangement, followed by licensed home-based care, and then licensed center-based care. Erikson Institute, a graduate school in Chicago focused on early childhood education, cites data from the 2019 NSECE survey which that about 8% of centers and 34% of listed homes provide some form of nontraditional hour care, while the rest of the care supply is found in unlisted homes, often provided by relatives, but also some nannies, neighbors, friends and babysitters. 

For licensed providers, the shift into nontraditional hour care tends to come organically, as it did for Reid. Because home-based care is typically provided in a smaller and more intimate setting, providers often develop strong personal relationships with the families they serve. So when one family has a schedule change or needs extra help, providers may be inclined to accommodate them 鈥� sometimes without any additional pay, said Juliet Bromer, research professor at Erikson and University of Delaware. 

Different types of nontraditional hour care tend to get 鈥渓umped together,鈥� Bromer said. But that can conflate the distinct experiences of providers caring for children during early mornings, late nights, overnight and on weekends.

鈥淢aybe we shouldn鈥檛 be talking about nontraditional hour care as this monolithic thing, because it isn鈥檛,鈥� said Bromer, who has studied this domain in Illinois. 

Each type of care comes with its own sets of challenges, routines and objectives. During weekend care 鈥� the most time for children to be in nontraditional hour care, according to the Urban Institute 鈥� many providers tend to offer children more downtime than they would during traditional weekday hours, said Diane Schilder, a senior fellow at the Urban Institute who led the think tank鈥檚 research on nontraditional hour care in 2023. That reflects what parents have said they want during weekend care for their children: a greater focus on play and rest, much like they would have if their parents were able to be with them. 

That鈥檚 true for Jackson, the provider in Alabama, who said the biggest difference in how she runs her program on the weekends, compared to a weekday, is that she gives the children more time to relax. 

鈥淭he schedule has been so rigid during the week,鈥� Jackson said. 鈥淚 get it. They need the downtime. 鈥� They need that time to just rest.鈥�

What that looks like in practice, she said, is extended time outdoors and more free time to do activities like puzzles and drawing. Just because their parents are at work, she said, doesn鈥檛 mean they shouldn鈥檛 get to unwind like other children do during their weekends.  

In New York, Reid鈥檚 weekend care is occasional, and a bit less predictable than Jackson鈥檚. She cares for the children of immigration lawyers, taxi drivers and nurses. Often, one parent is available on the weekend to care for their kids when the other is not. But sometimes, their schedules will overlap and they鈥檒l ask Reid to help. 

鈥淎s long as they can give me advanced notice and I鈥檓 available, sure,鈥� Reid said. 

鈥淚 have staff, so if I need to step back, staff can step up,鈥� she added, noting that she has one full-time and four part-time teachers to help with 14 children. 鈥淲hen I didn鈥檛 have staff, that was a different story. Oh, my gosh, that was exhausting.鈥�

Reid and Jackson, like most providers who offer care during unconventional hours, also care for children during traditional hours. Cynthia Davis, a home-based provider in Washington, D.C. who operates 23 hours a day, distinguishes between the two by calling one her 鈥渢raditional shift鈥� and the other her 鈥渢wilight shift.鈥� 

When she shifted into childcare a couple of decades ago, she decided that she would serve children from low-income families, whatever it took. 

鈥淚f I was going to have a program, I wanted to be sure I could serve all parents, regardless of what their shift was,鈥� she said. 

With her program located near a police station, a fire station and multiple hospitals, she has served children at all hours of the day 鈥� from 1 p.m. to 10 p.m., from 3 p.m. to midnight, from 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 the hours some of the parents needed,鈥� she explained. 

It鈥檚 a lifestyle that might wear on some people, but Davis enjoys it. 鈥淚鈥檓 a night owl,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 why I love overnight care. I love being up at night. Everybody is quiet. Nobody is disrupting you. It鈥檚 the daytime that wears me out.鈥�

When she cares for children overnight, her adult daughter who works at the program handles morning care so Davis can get some sleep. 鈥淚t鈥檚 why you need staff,鈥� she said. 鈥淵ou have to balance it out. If you don鈥檛 have balance, you鈥檒l drive yourself crazy.鈥�

The most children Davis has cared for overnight, she said, is six. Eventually she learned that she couldn鈥檛 really care for infants overnight, since their sleep isn鈥檛 well established and they tend to wake the others. 鈥淥ver time you learn how the children鈥檚 patterns are,鈥� she said, noting that she鈥檇 strategically place an early riser farther from a child who sleeps in later. 

When children get dropped off for an overnight shift at Davis鈥� house, they must be bathed and ready for bed. She finds out from families what their bedtime routine looks like on a typical night 鈥� books, music, a bit of TV 鈥� 鈥渟o we can mimic what you鈥檙e doing at home.鈥� 

Most children sleep in twin-sized rollaway beds; she also has cribs, elevated cots, floor mats and air mattresses. She will put the beds out in the common area 鈥� spread throughout a spacious living room, dining room and back room 鈥� before the kids go to sleep. Then Davis posts up in her comfortable recliner chair. She has a refrigerator and table right next to the chair. She does not sleep when the babies sleep. 

In the morning, Davis helps the children brush their teeth, get dressed and eat breakfast. 

Soon, as she begins to think about winding down her working years, she plans to move away from traditional care and only offer the 鈥渢wilight shift.鈥� She鈥檚 a night owl, after all. 

Some center-based programs do offer care during nontraditional hours, but it’s uncommon and the programs that do so primarily serve a specific population, such as the children of shift workers near a large manufacturing plant or . 

鈥淭here are very, very few center-based programs that offer late night and overnight care,鈥� said Bromer. 鈥淚t鈥檚 unpredictable. No one needs overnight care every night.鈥�

Many home-based providers will request a week鈥檚 notice or a few days鈥� notice for nontraditional hour care, but when families鈥� schedules are constantly changing, it鈥檚 not always possible. That is incompatible with the staffing setup in most centers, Bromer noted. 

Then there鈥檚 the practical reality, which is that 鈥� especially late at night, very early in the morning and overnight 鈥� want their children to be in a residential home, not a fluorescent-lit commercial building. 

Most centers don鈥檛 have space for beds, pointed out Natalie Renew, the executive director of Home Grown, a national collaborative of funders committed to improving the quality of and access to home-based childcare. What they have, instead, is thin cots. If given the option, many families would likely opt for rollaway beds like what Davis has in her home over 鈥渇limsy cots鈥� in a center for their child鈥檚 overnight sleep. 

鈥淚n a home-based environment, children are an extension of the family, eating meals in the home, watching Jeopardy,鈥� Renew said. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 a little more intuitive.鈥�

For parents who work unconventional hours, it helps a great deal to know their child is sleeping in a bed inside someone鈥檚 home, even if it鈥檚 not their own, said Jackson. 

鈥淚t gives that parent more of a home feeling, versus in a commercial property, where it鈥檚 more of a business,鈥� she said. 鈥淔amilies need us. They need the continuity of care. They need to know their babies are being treated with the utmost of respect.鈥�

In many places, it can be hard to come by licensed providers offering care outside of standard business hours. Davis recalled a mom who would take the bus from southeast D.C. to her program in northwest D.C. to drop off her 6-month-old baby before going to her job as a security officer. She had to switch buses along the route, and when traffic was bad, it would take her two hours door to door. 

Access is one of the reasons that care from trusted family, friends and neighbors is by far the most popular option for parents who work nontraditional hours. (It is also the most care arrangement for families during traditional hours.) This could look like two neighbors who both work nonstandard hours taking turns watching each other鈥檚 kids in their homes. It could be a family friend helping out for a small fee. Often, though, it鈥檚 a grandparent or other family member.

These types of informal arrangements make up the 鈥渂ulk鈥� of nontraditional hour care, said Bromer of Erikson. Parent surveys have found that they prefer this care type for its flexibility, affordability and nurturing environment. 

鈥淚t鈥檚 not paid care,鈥� in many cases, Bromer added, 鈥渂ut it is childcare.鈥�

Tonia McMillan is an FFN provider in Southern California caring for her grandchildren during nontraditional hours. McMillan had a nearly 30-year career as a licensed home-based provider, during which time she did occasionally provide care outside of standard hours to families. She retired from that career in 2023, feeling ready to close that chapter. 

But then McMillan鈥檚 two adult sons 鈥� both single dads 鈥� had new babies on the way. At the time, she and her sons decided to 鈥渁ll get under the same roof鈥� to help each other with expenses, and that included childcare. 

Today, McMillan lives in a five-bedroom house with her sons and two of her four grandchildren 鈥� now ages 9 and almost 2 鈥� whom she regularly cares for in the evenings. During their dad鈥檚 late-night shifts with a trucking company, McMillan feeds them and puts them to bed. Some days, if he gets home especially late, she鈥檒l also get the kids up in the morning, give them breakfast and get the older one to school. It works well, she said. 

鈥淭he only difficulty for me is my age,鈥� said McMillan, who is 67. 鈥淗aving to lift car seats in and out of cars 鈥� That鈥檚 part of the reason I retired. There鈥檚 such a physicality to doing childcare that people don鈥檛 realize. But here I am again.鈥�

There are days when McMillan has to make sacrifices to be able to care for her grandchildren 鈥� she鈥檚 very social, she said 鈥� and that can be discouraging. But she loves that she is able to help and said she鈥檒l keep doing it for as long as her son needs her. 

Still, she doesn鈥檛 view it as charity, and she doesn鈥檛 want others to see it that way either. McMillan gets about $1,200 per month in subsidy reimbursements from the state of California to take care of both children. 

鈥淚 don鈥檛 want to see this role being downplayed or portrayed as 鈥榶ou鈥檙e the grandmother, it鈥檚 your duty,鈥欌�� she said. 鈥淭hat strips away the importance of this work 鈥� how it fills a void, how it takes care of a gap. But it also binds families and makes them stronger and able to do what needs to be done for their children, for their household. It is such an important role that serves such an important purpose.鈥�

McMillan emphasized the importance of being able to provide childcare to her grandchildren in a space that is both theirs and hers. She can put the two children down in their own beds and then retire to her own room. 

鈥淚 can walk around in my moomoo,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 have to worry about if my hair is combed.鈥�

But the value runs deeper than that, too. 

鈥淭he comfort of being in a familiar surrounding with a familiar person who loves them unconditionally, it matters,鈥� McMillan said. 鈥淢y son doesn鈥檛 have to worry about calling or checking in, any of that. Just the trust factor alone carries so much weight. It carries so, so much weight.鈥�

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