Babysitting is the practice of temporarily caring for a child

Childcare

Child care means caring for and supervising child/children usually from 0–13 years of age. In the United States child care is increasingly referred to as early childhood education due to the understanding of the impact of early experiences of the developing child...

 on behalf of the child's parent

Parent

A parent is a caretaker of the offspring in their own species. In humans, a parent is of a child . Children can have one or more parents, but they must have two biological parents. Biological parents consist of the male who sired the child and the female who gave birth to the child...

s. Babysitting is commonly performed as an odd job by teenagers for extra money.
Babysitters can range in age, tending to be in their pre-teens/teens, ages 11–19, yet it is not uncommon for students in their 20s to take on babysitting as a part-time job. The type of work for babysitters also varies, from watching a sleeping child, to playing games, preparing meals, teaching the child to read, or even driving (if the age is right), depending on the agreed upon terms and determined by parental permission.

In some countries various organizations produce courses for babysitters, mainly focusing on child safety and first aid appropriate for infants and children.