Architect: Cannon Design

Pre-K Learning Garden

This garden goes beyond traditional climbing equipment to bring the children a unique educational experience, all while playing. The garden incorporates a variety of activity spaces that bring the teaching environment outdoors. An assembly area offers space for storytelling, or class presentations for both individual classes as well as multiple classes together. The “Main Street” concept is borrowed from the architecture and brought outside to the garden. Textures like brick, bluestone and exposed aggregate concrete, as well as visual keys to seasons, and time are sprinkled along the street way. In addition to large group gardens, each class has individual gardens. Colored concrete areas adjacent to the classrooms provide free play opportunities, while ample space is given for traditional climbing apparatus. The overall effect is a landscape of learning.

School Courtyard

The amphitheater courtyard needed to allow for occasional activities such as band or chorus concerts, class presentations, and graduation as well as community activities. It also needed to accommodate smaller everyday activities such as lunch periods and outdoor class activities. The intent of the design concept was to allow the interior geometry to penetrate and reinforce the exterior landscape. The grid from inside provided a datum from which the topography is allowed to spiral out, creating an amphitheater and outdoor class space.