THE HIVE SCHOOL
The absence of other schools in the neighborhood and the location of the school between Old Town and the Pearl District makes the site a good location for an Elementary school. The WeVillage Center in the Pearl District is the nearest Pre-School, and Chapel Hill Elementary school is located 2 miles away from the proposed site.
The Eastern side of the site is adjacent to the Park blocks. The school can be designed to act as an extension of the Park Blocks.
Jamison park is the nearest park at a distance of 0.4 miles from the site.
The wind direction is from the South in Fall and Winter, and from North-West in Spring and Summer. In winter, the sun angle is low at 21.50, buildings openings must be oriented to allow maximum sun penetration.
The sites adjacency to the North Park Blocks allows the school to be designed as a perpendicular extension of the Park. The main entrance to the building is on the Eastern side of the site, adjacent to the north end of the Park blocks. There is also a public entrance to library and gymnasium off 9th avenue.
Holistic education engages the head, hands and heart of the child. It is a curriculum that makes “community, earth, soul, subject and mind-and-body connections” and it develops intuition and inquiry. Holistic education draws from a range of philosophies and approaches, such as Waldorf, Reggio Emilia, and Montessori.
The curriculum is based on seven teaching and learning principles that are essential for a holistic approach towards the development of an individual:
1. Narrative-based
2. Arts-based
3. Experience-based
4. Inquiry-based
5. Cooperative-based
6. Teacher-led
7. Project-based
First Floor Plan
First Floor Walkthrough
The Hive School follows a honeycomb construction logic to transform corridors into common spaces, form a diverse learning environment, and promote a curriculum that teaches students to care for themselves and the world around them. There are large terraces on the third and fourth floor, framing the Northeast and Northwest site corners, respectively. The third level terrace also has a ramp connecting the school to the north park blocks. There is also a small hexagonal terrace on the fourth level between the open learning suite and the park side learning suite. There is a playground, a turf field, rooftop gardens, and restrooms on the rooftop terrace.
Second Floor Plan
Second Floor Walkthrough
The library and gymnasium are accessible to the public after school hours. The administration suite is adjacent to the main entrance. Offices are on the first level and a lounge is on the second level. On every floor, two by-grade learning suites and one open learning suite are connected by a large interior common space. Pre-school and kindergarten are on the first level, 1st and 2nd grade are on the second level, 3rd and 4th grades are on level three, and fifth grade is on level four. The open learning suite is designed for multi-level, cooperative, and arts-based learning (there is a play kitchen in each suite).
Third Floor Plan
Third Floor Walkthrough
Learning suites consist of flexible multi-sized and multi-shaped spaces. There is a large classroom space, a group learning space, and study rooms, all connected by a common learning space. To create a unique and flexible experience in the learning suite, the sliding partition walls are honeycomb panels made of an aluminum sheet with periodic slits and folded lines (allowing the panels transparency to change depending on the viewing angle).
Fourth Floor Plan
Fourth Floor Walkthrough
The rooftop terraces will be green roofs, with green wall railings, and solar paneling. There is also a bioswale between the school and Glisan avenue to carry runoff water from heavy storms and filter noise from the busy street.
To accommodate the Portland climate, the exterior of the building is made up of terracotta panels. To assure better acoustics, the interior flooring will be a floating (recycled) hardwood floor on top of a concrete slab. The ceilings will be exposed as an inquiry-based addition to the curriculum.
Roof Plan
Roof Walkthrough
Renderings
Sustainability Diagram
North Elevation
Section Diagram
Wall Section
Learning Suite Perspectives
