Chicago · Licensed center

Families Together Coop Nursery School

What these mean, and where they come from

Small means the smallest quarter of Chicago-area’s 1,949 licensed centers by state-licensed capacity: 8 to 48 children. Medium is 49 to 118; large is 119 to 487.

How they teach

Reggio Emilia, play-based and emergent curriculum

“You've seen the tagline here at FTCNS letting you know that we are a PLAY BASED SCHOOL!”In their words, August 2026.ftcns.org

“The Families Together emergent curriculum is facilitated by teachers who structure the environment but not the process of play.”In their words, August 2026.ftcns.org

“The teaching philosophy at FTCNS, inspired by the theories of John Dewey, Erik Erikson, Lev Vygotsky, and Jean Piaget, and the schools of Reggio-Emilia in Italy, is based upon constructivist principles of education.”In their words, August 2026.ftcns.org

One of 11 Chicago-area providers that describe a Reggio Emilia approach, out of 129 that describe any approach at all.

Who cares for your child

Ratio not published

One staff is named on their site, with no start year given.

What it costs

$89 to $1,820 a month

Chicago-area comparison hidden until they say which age this price is for.

Deposit $500, not refundable.

Shortlist doesn’t have these yet: sick and biting policies.

What the state has found

Routine visits: 6 of 6 cited something

Chicago-area centers: the state cites something at about 5 in 6 routine visits.

From Illinois DCFS’s published reports, last checked September 25, 2026.

Read every record and the state’s reports

State record — Illinois DCFS

Last visit
February 26, 2026
On file
6 visits since March 2015 — all of them cited findings
Fixed?
The latest correction deadline was March 26, 2026. Illinois DCFS does not publish whether it was made.
Most serious
Illinois DCFS does not publish a severity level for a citation, so there is no most-serious to name.

Illinois DCFS cites each subsection of a rule separately, so one audit of a filing cabinet can produce ten citations. It publishes the rule’s title and a correction deadline, but no description of what was observed.

Feb 2026 Monitoring visit 5 findings

Monitoring visit · February 26, 2026

General Requirements for Personnel

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.100(c)(6) · Violation corrected

Qualifications for Child Care Director

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.130(i)(1) · Violation corrected

Guidance and Discipline

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.270(a) · Violation corrected

Physical Plant/Indoor Space

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.370(e)(3) · Violation corrected

Cited: CCASEC7

0 citations · 89 Ill. Adm. Code · Violation corrected

DCFS compliance lookup On that page, enter provider number 006763 in the Provider box and choose Search; the compliance report downloads from the button on the result row.

Feb 2025 Monitoring visit 4 findings

Monitoring visit · February 25, 2025

General Requirements for Personnel

2 citations · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.100(d) through (i) · Violation corrected

89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.100(d) · 407.100(i)

Qualifications for Early Childhood Assistants and School-age Assistants

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.150(b) · Violation corrected

Medications

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.360(b)(1) · Violation corrected

DCFS compliance lookup On that page, enter provider number 006763 in the Provider box and choose Search; the compliance report downloads from the button on the result row.

Mar 2024 Monitoring visit 1 finding

Monitoring visit · March 5, 2024

Substitutes

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.170(a) · Violation substantiated

DCFS compliance lookup On that page, enter provider number 006763 in the Provider box and choose Search; the compliance report downloads from the button on the result row.

Feb 2023 Monitoring visit 3 findings

Monitoring visit · February 2, 2023

General Requirements for Personnel

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.100(f) · Violation corrected

Medications

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.360(b) · Violation corrected

Cited: FHSEC305

0 citations · 89 Ill. Adm. Code · Violation corrected

DCFS compliance lookup On that page, enter provider number 006763 in the Provider box and choose Search; the compliance report downloads from the button on the result row.

Feb 2016 Monitoring visit 1 finding

Monitoring visit · February 18, 2016

Health Requirements for Children

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.310(a)(6) · Violation corrected on site

DCFS compliance lookup On that page, enter provider number 006763 in the Provider box and choose Search; the compliance report downloads from the button on the result row.

Mar 2015 Monitoring visit 1 finding

Monitoring visit · March 17, 2015

Personnel Records

1 citation · 89 Ill. Adm. Code 407.120(e)(4) · Violation corrected

DCFS compliance lookup On that page, enter provider number 006763 in the Provider box and choose Search; the compliance report downloads from the button on the result row.

How the comparison is built

Routine visits: across Chicago-area centers, the state cites something at about 5 in 6 routine visits (19,088 visits).

A day here

Outdoors
Daily outdoor and large-motor play in the school's courtyard, the playground across the street, neighborhood walks, a nearby community garden, or an indoor gym (the brand’s policy for all its schools)
Calendar
School year
Schedule
half-day sessions, offered part-week (2-4 days) or full-week (5 days) (the brand’s policy for all its schools)

Details

7733815200

Website
ftcns.org
Address
1500 W Elmdale Ave
License
license issued (il)
Ages they serve
2 1/2 to 5 years
Established
1999

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Sources and dates

Where every fact on this page came from, and when Shortlist last checked it against that source. Anything Shortlist could not source is named here rather than left blank.

How they teach

How they teach

How they teach

Who cares for your child

What it costs

  • Monthly tuition, Deposit — Checked August 2026 ftcns.org

State record

Every state visit and complaint on file, shown in full and never edited. Open a date to read what the state wrote.

A day here

  • Outdoors — Checked August 2026 ftcns.org
  • Calendar, Schedule — Checked August 2026 ftcns.org

Details

  • Phone, Address, License — Checked July 2026 sunshine.dcfs.illinois.gov. To check it, open sunshine.dcfs.illinois.gov's Licensed Provider Lookup, enter "FAMILIES TOGETHER COOP NURSERY SCHOOL" under Provider Name and 60660 under Zip, and press Search (DCFS provider 006763).
  • Website — Checked August 2026 ftcns.org
  • Ages they serve — Checked August 2026 ftcns.org
  • Established — Checked August 2026 ftcns.org