Founded in 1975, The Children’s Nursery School (CNS) is a state-licensed, nonprofit cooperative preschool in the heart of Portland, Maine.

Our child-centered program invites students to flourish academically and socially by focusing on exploration and cooperation. Both teachers and parents guide that experience by providing an engaging environment with a careful balance of structure and free play.

Our school year runs Monday-Thursday 9am - 12:30pm, September through early June. We are a multi-age program of 3, 4 and 5 year-olds and children must be at least 2.75 to apply.

We cap enrollment at 18 children and the classroom always has at least a 1:5 ratio of adults to children. Our wonderful head teacher, Resa is always present in addition to rotating parent classroom helpers. Parents bring in their own ideas and expertise to create a truly unique learning environment targeting the interests, developmental stages and desires of the class.

In addition to our emergent curriculum, we also have a rich history of tradition, including annual community events such as our Winter Carnival and End-of-Year Parade. Check out our Events page to join us at some of our upcoming community gatherings.