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Hands-On
Activities
 Demonstrations and
curriculum based programs continue to make the Tennessee Agricultural
Museum a popular destination for teachers. Programs last
approximately one hour and concentrate on one particular subject area
in the museum. Teachers can select seasonal activity programs or
choose to do a walking tour of the museum.
The program fee of
$1.00 per person allows one free admission with each class of 15 or
more students. Maximum group size of 60. A minimum of 15
students is required for an activity program. If your scheduled
number drops below 15, you should call to re-schedule. Reservations are required. Call (615) 837-5197 for scheduling.
Covered
Wagons & Log Cabins On The Cumberland
September - October
March - April - May
 This program
features a covered wagon and typical items needed for a family's
journey and settlement in Tennessee. Your group will have the chance
to see and touch a variety of items as they make decisions about
loading the wagon with food, furniture and cooking utensils. Selected
students will be asked to help demonstrate tools needed for building
new homes and farming the land. Note: Weather will dictate the use of
the log cabin area adjacent to the museum.
Tennessee's First Farmers--An
Indian Legacy
November
 Tennessee's first
farmers were growing corn, beans, squash and pumpkins over a thousand
years ago. The life of these Indian people who cared for the land
will be better understood as students see and touch stone hoes, axes,
and flint points. Selected students will also have an opportunity to
make a clay pendant and grind corn with hand stones. A display of
seeds, plants and roots will highlight Native American life-ways which
included both cultivation and conservation.
Home for
the Holidays
December
 Gather round the
cedar tree for stories and demonstrations featuring handmade ornaments
and old-fashioned toys from a kaleidoscope of cultures. Sleigh bells
and songs will make this a happy holiday celebration as we recall
simple pleasures of long ago. Students will also enjoy sugar cookies
and apple cider before choosing a colorful holiday pencil as a
reminder of the traditional cedar that was part of Christmas on the
farm.
George
Washington: First President & Farmer
January
- February
 Join the
celebration honoring George Washington--progressive farmer, famous
soldier and America's first President. With a display of cakes,
cookies and cherry tarts, kitchen activities will include saucering
tea, turning an iron cherry pitter and grinding corn with a hand-turned gristmill. A bag of freshly ground cornmeal and recipe for making Washington's favorite corncakes will be given for cooking and tasting at school. Some
students will use a quill pin and sander to address an invitation
while others make notes from the farm records that Washington kept.
The group will see a hand flail while selected students thresh wheat, build a fence, use a cross-cut saw and shell corn. Older children will
also have a chance to see the 18th century surveying equipment that
influenced the future of America's first president.
School Days
in the Country
April -
May
September - October
 The teacher's hand
bell will ring out as students enter the chapel school that features
an 1865 wood burning stove, benches, water bucket and gourd dipper.
Before lessons, students will stack firewood, sweep with the flat
broom and sew copybooks. Your group will also use hornbooks, nib pens
and slates as they focus on a time when farm children carried lunch
pails and walked miles to study the "3 R's." Note: Limited to 30
students.
Farm Chores and Summer Fun - Farm Life Before Electricity
June -
July - August
 Wash tubs,
scrub boards, corn shuck brooms, flat irons and butter churns will be part of the fun as groups participate in activities at the log cabins. Using a garden push plow, youth will have a chance to cultivate and weed heirloom vegetables like Red Velvet Okra, Civil War Peanuts and Cherokee Trail of Tears Beans. While snapping beans, silking corn and shelling peas, they will also discover how their great-grandmothers preserved summer vegetables for the winter months.
Traveling Trunk -
Bringing History to the Classroom!
Year-round
"Pioneer Journey" - the traveling
trunk will build a sense of adventure as students see and touch items
familiar to Tennessee pioneers. From betty lamps to buckskin and
butter molds, there will be interesting objects to capture the
imagination. Using a resource packet of activities and stories,
students will journey to a time when pioneer farm families helped
shape the course of our state. Click Here
For More Details.
Grades K - 4. Check-out Monday AM.
$25 for two weeks.
Teacher Information
Reservations are required for Activity Programs. Call (615) 837-5197 to schedule. Program fee is $1 for each student and adult.
A minimum of 15 students is required for activity programs. If your student number drops below 15, you should call to re-schedule. Maximum group size is 60-70. One free admission is allowed with each class of 15 or more students.
- To avoid being rushed, please be on time and have your check prepared. Advance notice is expected if there is a cancellation or change in number.
- The museum reserves the right to charge a fee if cancellation is not made within 24 hours of scheduled program.
- Programs, designed for Kindergarten through 6th Grade, last approximately one hour and concentrate on one particular subject area of the museum.
- You may select one of the activity programs or choose to do a walking tour of the museum.
- Pre-visit materials and driving directions are found on this website.
- Museum hours are 9 AM through 4PM on Monday through Friday. We are closed on holidays.
Mailing Address
Tennessee Agricultural Museum
Tennessee Department of Agriculture
Ellington Agricultural Center
Nashville, TN 37204
Location
440 Hogan Road, Nashville, Tennessee
Sorry, picnic facilities are NOT available.
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