The purpose of this research brief is to provide information that can be used to target and guide content for professional development efforts designed for home-based child care providers. To do this, home-based providers who participated in a large multi-state study were grouped into three quality categories according to their scores on observational measures of teaching and interaction, tone/discipline, provisions for health, instructional supports for literacy, and caregiver sensitivity. We also examined how providers in the three groups differed in their professional characteristics, their attitudes and sup-ports, and the composition and characteristics of their home-based care settings.