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Surrounded by Oaks - The Call Center is surrounded by heritage oaks that are hundreds of years old. We don't believe that young children belong in institutions, and we have tried to give the young child more of a feeling of entering a 'village', rather than being part of a huge college. |
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The Central Courtyard - By designing the building around a central garden and courtyard we have helped to make a large building feel smaller, on a more appropriate scale for young children. This courtyard creates a 'sense of place' that is different from the rest of the college. During the course of the year flowers and trees blossom and there's even a planter for the children to tend. The central 'Umbrella Sculpture' is coated with a color-shifting paint that looks different under changing lighting conditions. |
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Protected Eaves in the Courtyard - By designing the wide eaves, it is easy for students and children to use the courtyard even in inclement weather. Children enter their classrooms directly from this courtyard, eliminating the need for large 'institutional feel' hallways. |
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Instruction is Upstairs and the Children's Center is located on the ground floor - College students enter the upstairs instructional space on an open stairway. Elevators are also available for those needing assistance. |
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Area for infants aged 6-18 months - This area will have a maximum of 4 young infants (with two caregivers). It is a cozy space with a variety of interesting objects in it for the babies to explore and grow. The changing area is self contained on the left. In the back is a crib room for napping babies. A closed circuit TV allows caregivers in this room to keep an eye and and ear open for the nappers. Note that there is a low window on the right (not in this picture) which allows the babies in the younger room to view the room that they will eventually transition into. Their caregiver will move along with them, providing the continuity of care recommended by the Program for Infant Toddler Caregivers. |
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Toddlers classroom 1 - This room for 18-36 month old toddlers has a variety of interest areas including a large motor climber with a cozy space underneath. |
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Toddlers classroom 2 - This photo shows another view of the toddlers room with a variety of active and quiet areas for the children to play in and explore. At the far end of the room is a one-way observation window that students can use to unobtrusively watch child behaviors and teaching strategies. The rooms are miked, so that students can listen in on the interactions. |
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Pre-school rooms have a variety of learning areas - Separate areas are set up for language arts, dramatic play, manipulative toys, science, art, music, etc. Additionally there are quieter spaces where children can retreat away from the group during the day. Environments are set up to reflect the home cultures of the children enrolled. |
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Outdoor Classroms - The outdoor space is seen as an extension of the classroom, with a variety of learning areas and play spaces. There are flowering fruit trees, a garden area, a natural area under a spreading oak tree, as well as bike paths, climbers and a puppet stage. The extended eaves next to the building allow for tables with learning activities to be set out, even during the rain for year round use. |
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Instructional Classrooms designed to reflect a philosophy - Our classrooms are set up with tables and chairs that allow students to work collaboratively and provide help to each other in learning. One classroom has been specifically designed to teach curriculum classes like art and music. |
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Student Group Workroom and Library - In our instructional area we have created a workroom and library where students can meet to work collaboratively with their peers. We keep a large number of text and other resource books available. They also have access to a computer with a link to the campus library. |