More about CDC (2)
A large activity room is at the center of the building in between the two end spaces. The room is brightened by natural light and playful primary colors found on the ceiling, walls and floor.
The floor is covered in two different materials. The majority of the floor space is covered with vinyl composite tiles that are speckled with bits of red, blue and yellow. Geometric shapes in these same colors give the floor a quilt-like appearance. This same patterning is picked up in the classrooms. Floor patterns in the toddler rooms are diffused, while those in the older children's rooms are bold.
The other portion of the activity room floor is covered in a blue carpet specially made for athletic activities, such as bouncing balls, running and jumping. The activity room is flanked by covered porches, so children can play outside even in inclement weather.
This connection to the outdoors is maintained in the classrooms. Each room has a door to the outside. McKinney discovered in researching this project that children learn more being outdoors observing bugs, birds and plants than they do being sequestered indoors. When the children must be indoors, the windows are low enough for them to look out.
The use of primary colors continues in the children's classrooms. In this toddler room, the pattern of colors on the floor is simple, while in the older children's rooms it is more complex.
Materials for the classrooms were chosen to create a transition between school and home. Wood handrails, chair rails and baseboards soften the spaces, and suspended uplights provide even, ambient lighting for small children lying on their backs. Outside the classrooms, the octagonal space is illuminated with a custom made glass lamp. Recessed lighting sheds extra light down the ramp to the activity room.
Where the ramp meets the octagonal space, a staircase leads up to teachers' workrooms on both ends of the building. The workrooms' clerestory windows allow more natural light to reach the activity room.
Exterior Coordination
The Circle C Child Development Center--which is named for the Circle C Ranch that originally occupied the subdivision's property--is constructed of materials that emphasize the blending of residential and institutional use. The center uses the same colors of concrete block--rose, gray and cream--as adjacent buildings in the complex, but recombines them in different patterns to create both continuity and freshness.
Colors of concrete blocks used for the exterior of the center are the same as those used for adjacent buildings, however here they are patterned differently to create both continuity and freshness.
Wood canopies shade the entrances at either end of the building. On the columns that support the canopies are custom light sconces. Made of metal and shaped like little animals, sconces glow with pin pricks of light as well as back wash the columns with light.
The center's outdoor area is dotted with the newest kind of play equipment made of wood, plastic and metal. Because the center is on a large piece of land, there are a variety of playscapes and tricycle paths, in addition to plenty of open ground for nature hikes. To select and place the equipment, the design team consulted with Joe Frost, an authority on playground equipment safety from the University of Texas.
The younger children's play area sits on a surface made of recycled tires, which is resilient and does not absorb heat. Pea gravel was used for the older children's play surfaces.
Atop a concrete column that supports a wooden entry canopy is a bunny-shaped wall sconce. At night, the sconce glows with light that comes through tiny holes and back washes the column with light.
A large activity room is at the center of the building in between the two end spaces. The room is brightened by natural light and playful primary colors found on the ceiling, walls and floor.
The floor is covered in two different materials. The majority of the floor space is covered with vinyl composite tiles that are speckled with bits of red, blue and yellow. Geometric shapes in these same colors give the floor a quilt-like appearance. This same patterning is picked up in the classrooms. Floor patterns in the toddler rooms are diffused, while those in the older children's rooms are bold.
The other portion of the activity room floor is covered in a blue carpet specially made for athletic activities, such as bouncing balls, running and jumping. The activity room is flanked by covered porches, so children can play outside even in inclement weather.
This connection to the outdoors is maintained in the classrooms. Each room has a door to the outside. McKinney discovered in researching this project that children learn more being outdoors observing bugs, birds and plants than they do being sequestered indoors. When the children must be indoors, the windows are low enough for them to look out.
The use of primary colors continues in the children's classrooms. In this toddler room, the pattern of colors on the floor is simple, while in the older children's rooms it is more complex.
Materials for the classrooms were chosen to create a transition between school and home. Wood handrails, chair rails and baseboards soften the spaces, and suspended uplights provide even, ambient lighting for small children lying on their backs. Outside the classrooms, the octagonal space is illuminated with a custom made glass lamp. Recessed lighting sheds extra light down the ramp to the activity room.
Where the ramp meets the octagonal space, a staircase leads up to teachers' workrooms on both ends of the building. The workrooms' clerestory windows allow more natural light to reach the activity room.
Exterior Coordination
The Circle C Child Development Center--which is named for the Circle C Ranch that originally occupied the subdivision's property--is constructed of materials that emphasize the blending of residential and institutional use. The center uses the same colors of concrete block--rose, gray and cream--as adjacent buildings in the complex, but recombines them in different patterns to create both continuity and freshness.
Colors of concrete blocks used for the exterior of the center are the same as those used for adjacent buildings, however here they are patterned differently to create both continuity and freshness.
Wood canopies shade the entrances at either end of the building. On the columns that support the canopies are custom light sconces. Made of metal and shaped like little animals, sconces glow with pin pricks of light as well as back wash the columns with light.
The center's outdoor area is dotted with the newest kind of play equipment made of wood, plastic and metal. Because the center is on a large piece of land, there are a variety of playscapes and tricycle paths, in addition to plenty of open ground for nature hikes. To select and place the equipment, the design team consulted with Joe Frost, an authority on playground equipment safety from the University of Texas.
The younger children's play area sits on a surface made of recycled tires, which is resilient and does not absorb heat. Pea gravel was used for the older children's play surfaces.
Atop a concrete column that supports a wooden entry canopy is a bunny-shaped wall sconce. At night, the sconce glows with light that comes through tiny holes and back washes the column with light.
