Connecting Nests

Massachusetts · 4-3

4-3 in Massachusetts

The child is with one parent four nights a week and the other three, on the same days every week. In Massachusetts this is written into a Parenting Plan, where time with a child is called parenting time.

Build this plan for Massachusetts — free

Template for educational use — not legal advice. Consult a licensed attorney in your state. Laws change; confirm current requirements with a licensed attorney in Massachusetts.

The rotation

A = one parent, B = the other. Each cell is one overnight. This rotation divides regular school-year overnights 57/43 — about 209 and 156 nights a year.
WeekMonTueWedThuFriSatSun
1 AAAABBB

What Massachusetts expects

Massachusetts presumes shared legal custody at the temporary-order stage; shared physical custody is decided on the facts.

Governing law: Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 208, § 31.

The honest trade-off

The most predictable schedule on this list — every week is identical, so there is no odd/even week to track and no calendar needed after the first month. It's also the natural on-ramp to 50/50: shifting a single night makes it 3-4-4-3.

Other schedules in Massachusetts