The primary goal of this project was to provide a constant interaction between students and nature; a design requirement of the Montessori brief and an ever rarer experience within the rapidly growing city. To achieve this, the boundaries are blurred between inside and outside as all learning environments (classrooms) are accessed from a covered walkway circumnavigating a densely planted “Jungle” courtyard.

Four controlled access points open to the exterior landscape conceived in a “pinwheel” formation from the central courtyard. Recreational/Learning landscape features including an outdoor art room, amphitheater, playground, sandpit, labyrinth, and individual classroom gardens radiate around the existing building footprint allowing for easy access, supervision and maintenance.

This project is the first stand-alone Montessori school for the Ekya Early Years brand and the prototype for future locations.

The program includes a full office/reception suite, 13 learning environments, art room, AV room, flexible common areas and outdoor recreation/learning spaces. One of the major challenges of this project was stabilizing the existing building, which was in major disrepair, so that it was suitable for a school.

Due to cost and major structural constraints the existing building frame and shell were left intact though exceptions were made to create additional links between interior and exterior spaces and to highlight the main entrances. Within this predefined framework, playful architectural interventions occur at the children’s scale, creating reading nooks between classrooms, formal/impromptu seating areas and sculpted terrain.