The Dixon residence in North Suffolk’s Camellia Drive is unlike most homes. Just as relevant, it’s unlike most childcare establishments as well.

Antionette Dixon decided to leave her well-paying childcare center job to work from home 15 years ago, and husband Henry joined her upon leaving the Navy five years later.

With purpose-converted rooms full of picture books, toys, play kitchens and building blocks, their home offers all the amenities children demand.

Childrens Corner, as the Dixons call their business, was one of only three homes awarded five stars in a Virginia pilot of the Quality Rating and Improvement System, a ratings strategy to guide parents and caregivers formed by a coalition of states and organizations.

The other two homes are in Chesapeake and Northern Virginia, Suffolk Early Childhood Development Commission Coordinator Brenda O’Donnell stated in an email.

Another North Suffolk home, operated by Michelle Freeman, received four stars. Freeman was unavailable for comment.

“Even if we got one or two stars, we would have been thankful, to let the people know that we’re a quality childcare business,” Antionette Dixon said.

“They make sure you cover each one of the steps — safety, what you feed them, how often you wash your hands, how much you sanitize your home,” Henry Dixon said.

According to one of several organizations involved in the program, Smart Beginnings, homes are rated on several aspects.

The qualifications of staff and their interaction with children, the staff-children ratio, how appropriately homes are appointed, activities offered, and the level of preparation of children for school are all factors.

The Planning Council, a nonprofit in Hampton Roads, Northeastern North Carolina, Northern Virginia and Maryland, worked with 11 homes whose ratings were published, Vice President of Children’s Services Ipek Taffe said.

Participants “showed a lot of courage,” she added, explaining that homes were evaluated before receiving quality improvement plans, mentoring and resources.

The year-long pilot was co-sponsored by the Virginia Early Childhood Foundation and the Virginia Department of Social Services’ Office of Early Childhood Development.

It involved 75 family childcare homes in six parts of Virginia, a report to the foundation board states.

It also involved the work of 10 “master star raters,” 13 raters, and 21 mentors, the report says, and the Dixons are proud to have now become mentors themselves.

“We go out to family daycare centers and make sure they can get onto the program,” said Henry Dixon, who attends early childcare education classes at Tidewater Community College.

Some parents regard family childcare homes as amateurish and unregulated, but Taffe says they are often less expensive and offer a more family friendly environment along with flexibility.

Many provide 24/7 care, and the Dixons, whose clients include many military families working odd hours and enduring unplanned absences, don’t balk at early mornings or late nights.

Henry Dixon said his Navy background helps in the flexibility stakes, saying, “I may not be able to rise as quickly as I used to, but I can still get up.”

“You have to change who you are” to open your home to child care, he added. “There’s no more movies with profanity … you have to realign your whole life.”

Suffolk has four licensed homes, which can care for up to 12, O’Donnell stated.

“Through a Smart Beginnings Early Learning Challenge grant we are working with nine homes to become licensed,” she added. “It is a quite lengthy process.”

There are many more homes voluntarily registered through the Planning Council, “a good option for those caring for fewer than six children.”

Antionette Dixon said they cared for one child whose parents were separated, with the Navy father often deployed overseas.

She was with the Dixons so much that the mother, trying to sign her daughter out early from school one time, was asked, “Who are you? You don’t look familiar,” Dixon said.

“The last little girl we had for 10 years, her parents came and surprised us on Father’s Day, and it was the best Father’s Day he ever had,” she said.