Jablonec nad Nisou Montessori Nursey School, Making the World a Wonderful Place

“Nursery schools are buildings in which young children develop fundamental relationships with the world: they are places in which we are alone for the first time, away from the safety of our family. Here, we develop individual connections with people and the surrounding environment for the first time in our life.” Aware of the importance of nursery schools for the process of personal growth, the Mjölk architects approached an expansion project for the Jablonec nad Nisou nursery school in the Czech Republic with a strongly innovative spirit, desiring to create a place for children to grow up curious and safe. This approach to the project started with a specific belief: that the world is a fun place, waiting to be discovered.

The relationship between architecture and disciplines – like sociology and pedagogy – has never been so close and pronounced. The educational orientation of the school, which uses the Montessori method (an educational system based on the development of independence and freedom of choice from early childhood onwards), further encouraged the architects in the creation of the project designed to meet the aptitudes and respective needs of the little ones. 

 

A Child-Centered Project

The memories that adults have of their nursery schools are vague and confusing – fragmented images tied to particular visual, auditory, and olfactory sensations. However, what remains indelible years later is the memory of how one felt in that place.

The guiding principles of Mjölk during the design process were the enjoyment and needs of the children. The architects sought to not lose sight of the course, as often happens when a project needs to satisfy a series of constraints and requirements imposed by regulations. Regulations can often lead to designs that are the simple result of a mathematical equation, but the architects always kept their focus firmly in mind: to create a building that is just right for the youngest children.

The nursery school is located within a two-story building, connected to the pre-existing building on both levels: a white-plastered reinforced concrete construction, it has a prismatic shape with a few, large openings placed in different positions on each front and a volume that extends out on the north side. A stainless-steel mesh enveloping the buildings, walkways on the façade, metal parapets placed on the roof, and a steel sculpture on the ground floor outdoor terrace all give the building a vaguely constructivist vibe.

The shapes and materials contrast the pre-existing building, a historic piece of architecture with larger dimensions, classic lines and a pitched roof with small dormer windows.

>>> Discover the Palais de l’Alma nursery school, constructed with natural materials

 

Exploring Architecture through Play

The indoor space is a single room, carved out from a large central void and subdivided vertically into the ground floor and three intermediate floors arranged around the central space. The presence of mezzanines within the full-height space allows the children to see each other from different levels and offer multiple nooks and crannies in which to hide and take refuge. A slide that goes around the exterior of the building connects the second floor to the ground floor, providing an element of play and fun while also accelerating the descent. The habitable roof is also another play space, accessible through an external staircase leading up from the third intermediate floor, from which there is an exceptional view of the surroundings.

Another outdoor play space is the large concrete terrace which extends from the ground floor, connecting to the garden and creating a covering that protects the parking garage on the floor below.

The connection with the pre-existing building occurs on two levels, the ground floor and the second floor. The passage is through the bathrooms, which the architects considered to be another element of fun and amusement for the children.

 

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