The natural environment is both beautiful and harsh, allowing children to explore freely and occasionally fall. We hope this project will nurture kinder children who not only love nature but also love themselves and embrace others.
Project Name: Kinder
Studio Name: Wooyo Architecture
Location: Zhubei, Taiwan
Area: 2616 m2
Project condition: Unbuilt project
This hillside kindergarten was inspired by a group of Taiwanese entrepreneurs who bought a sloped piece of land with the vision of creating a unique space for early childhood education. Their goal was to establish a kindergarten that blends the latest teaching methods with the most pristine natural environment. As a corporate-sponsored kindergarten, the owners aimed to provide more than just support for their employees. They sought to fulfill social responsibility and convey educational values, ultimately creating a model forest kindergarten.
Statement : In-Real.
Children don’t need colorful slides; they need genuine sensory experiences. In nature, leaves and grass display hundreds of shades of green; the soil after rain emits a rich array of scents; and flowers offer various flavors of nectar. These subtle variations in nature are far more intricate and captivating than any artificial colors or smells.
Children do not require a completely safe environment, but rather real-life experiences. In reality, there are uneven surfaces, sudden rainstorms, bothersome insects, and animal companions like cats and dogs. Such unavoidable events provide children with opportunities to understand the diversity and complexity of the world.
Children need more than just accelerated math lessons; they need to master the most important skill—understanding their true selves. Through interactions with friends, internal dialogues, and conversations with imaginary companions, children gradually discover their emotions, needs, and talents. They explore ideas through external challenges and internal reflection.
This boundaryless building, through its highly creative spatial design, offers a safe yet dynamic environment for children. Here, they can freely stretch, run, and even fall as they explore the world without restrictions. This design not only demonstrates how to respect nature but also sets an example for children on how to challenge conventions and passionately engage with their surroundings.
Why are there boundaries?
The kindergarten is situated on a gentle slope without any land excavation, filling, or retaining walls. By reducing columns and walls and smoothing out the elevation changes, the indoor and outdoor spaces are seamlessly connected like an undulating landscape. Subtle adjustments in the interior ground levels create flat classrooms and sloping ramps. The varying shades of the wooden flooring hint at different inclines, providing clues for children to explore various uses. The interior space retains a significant amount of blank areas and features plants and soil in the courtyard; within this kindergarten, the natural environment and the children will together create the most beautiful scenery.
From the high point of the slope, as you move up the gentle incline of the building to the second floor, the tranquil space resembles a cloud, shielding from the harsh sun and heavy rain while providing a workspace for teachers. Children, on the other hand, dine in natural light and sleep accompanied by the breeze, the chirping of insects, and the songs of birds. The natural environment is both beautiful and harsh, allowing children to explore freely and occasionally fall. We hope this project will nurture kinder children who not only love nature but also love themselves and embrace others.
