The new Montessori Middle School in Louisville (the Blount Co. TN Louisville) is hosting their 1st Annual Farm Festival on Saturday, May 10, 2008 from 11AM to 4PM at the school, which is located at 3725 Louisville Rd (map). The event is open to the public and there is no charge for admission.

According to Nicole DeBurton, head of the school, Montessori Middle School is a unique and innovative program in that it is located in a farm setting, with plans to include gardening, building, and animal husbandry as part of the curriculum. This is the first school of its kind in the Southeast, and only three other such farm-based Montessori Middle Schools exist in the entire country.

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MONTESSORI MIDDLE SCHOOL TO HOST FARM FESTIVAL

East Tennessee’s new Montessori Middle School, located in Louisville, will be hosting our 1st Annual Farm Festival on Saturday, May 10, 2008 from 11am-4pm at the school, which is located at 3725 Louisville Rd.

This event is open to all. There is no charge for admission. Tickets for activities and refreshments will be sold at the festival. Refreshments will include hot dogs, baked beans, corn bread, coleslaw, and desserts. Planned activities include games for kids and adults, llama walks, goat and chicken feeding, tree planting, a beekeeping presentation, crafts, cake walk, wool spinning demo and tractor-pulled trailer rides. This event is to give the community an opportunity to visit the school and to experience many of the activities students of Montessori Middle School will be involved in at the farm-based school.

Montessori Middle School will open in August 2008 and will serve 6th to 8th grade students from the East Tennessee area. Applications are now being accepted. Though priority will be given to students with previous Montessori education, the school is open to all students who will be entering grades 6,7, or 8 in the fall of 2008.

Montessori Middle School is a unique and innovative program in that it is located in a farm setting, with plans to include gardening, building, and animal husbandry as part of the curriculum. This is the first school of its kind in the Southeast, and only three other such farm-based Montessori Middle Schools exist in the entire country. Anyone interested in finding out more about the school, or ways they can help contribute, can visit the website, (link...), or contact the school at (865) 985-8900, or by email at mms@discoveret.org.