Montessori school finds new home in Forest

With large, abundant windows, skylights and a heated floor for students to work from, this new school will provide a distinctly Montessori feel.

After a previous period of uncertainty, Blue Ridge Montessori School is getting a new home along U.S. 221 in Forest, just north of Cottontown Road.

The school currently operates out of a building and two cottages on Burnbridge Road, rented from the Forest Volunteer Fire Department.

“It really provides a future for the school,” said Karl Friedman, a member of the school’s board of directors. “The school really didn’t have any long-range plan or future (at the Burnbridge location).”

Two years ago, fire department officials said they were planning to expand, and might not be able to continue renting out the location. That’s when the school started hunting for a new place to move, and eventually settled on the property along U.S. 221.

While the old location has about 2,000 square feet, the new one under construction will be triple that in its first year, with the potential to expand further, said Tom Scott, who is developing the property and leasing it out to the school.

“We have a property big enough that we could build them another building if they get enough students,” he said. “That’s the ultimate goal.”

Scott began the $600,000 project in early May and aims to have it completed for a move-in date of Aug. 21. The new school year begins Aug. 31.

“That was the real problem — could we get it done fast enough?” Scott said.

So far, they’re on track.

The new building will have capacity for 90 students, Friedman said, and officials hope to enroll 75 students for this fall.

The school currently accepts students for the primary program, ages 3 to 6, and for the early-learning group, ages 2 to 3.

If enough parents show interest, school officials hope to have another building constructed on the same site that would be for 6- to 9-year-old and 9- to 12-year-old sections, Friedman said.

The school, in its 24th year, implements the methods of Maria Montessori, an Italian doctor who observed children from different cultures to find a common development process.

“Real life is taught in the classroom,” said Jennifer Thornhill, a parent, Montessori enthusiast and former director of the school. “It’s truly a place where children learn to love learning.”

Friedman said the new construction reflects the Montessori method.

Because children work from the floor, crews are installing radiant floors that heat the building from the ground up.

The walls are lined with 5-foot by 6-foot windows, and skylights will allow in more sunlight from above.

“The whole idea is to have as much natural light and as little unnatural light as possible,” Friedman said.

The site also includes a half-acre playground, a covered porch, gardens, four classrooms, offices and cathedral ceilings — all overlooking a duck pond.

“It’s a lot more peaceful and relaxing,” Friedman said. “Which is a great environment for them to learn in, and find their own niche, and then accelerate.”