Children Spaces – Mark Dudek (KTE0022)

Children Spaces – Mark Dudek, Contents:  

1 Talking and listening to children, Alison Clark

The author describes a methodology for interacting with young children to gain important insights about the architecture and detail design of their space, the childcare centre.

2 Designing for play, Michael Laris

Designer Michael Laris explains his approach to the design of playground equipment as one where his respect for children helps to create a particularly child-orientated environment.

3 Place making and change in learning environments, Bruce A Jilk

Here, educationist Bruce Jilk posits the view that our school system, the curriculum and its physical context is an obsolete form for education in the twenty-first century. He proposes a more flexible model which allows much more creativity within the learning process and the environments which serve it.

4 The school building as third teacher, Eleanor Nicholson

Drawing on her discussions with staff and students in Californian schools, Eleanor Nicholson explains how important the environment is in complementing the educational and social support of the pedagogy.

5 The classroom is a microcosm of the world, John Edwards

John Edwards observes a wide range of existing classrooms in use. He illustrates the complex integration of activities and functions which take place within this most intensively inhabited room.

6 The classroom as an evolving landscape, Prue Chiles

Her inspiring approach to design, incorporating a process of deep consultation and an overtly child-centred attitude to design, encapsulates the key principles of designing the inside–outside classroom.

7 The schools we’d like: young people’s participation in architecture, Ben Koralek and Maurice Mitchell

The authors describe their project where children and architecture students were encouraged to participate in the design of their school. This reminds us of the need to interact with children as well as to instruct them.

8 Digital landscapes – the new media playground, Mark Dudek

The author explains aspects of the new digital culture of childhood which has transformed the social lives of children in the home and is increasingly dictating new educational strategies at school.

9 Spaces without children, Helen Penn

Research carried out by the author shows how the public domain has become a place which is largely devoid of children. When we construct spaces which are geared towards shopping and the car; we all lose out, particularly children.

10 Razor blades and teddy bears – the health and safety protocol, Judith and John Hicks

Experts in the health and safety field discuss the issues surrounding the design of  children’s play environments. They outline the practical and legal implications of designing for children and explain the current cultural climate which makes it essential to design safe, accessible playgrounds.

11 The sustainable landscape, Susan Herrington

Susan Herrington describes the approach to procuring a new schoolyard in Vancouver. She sets out her concerns about the urban environment; and the messages it sends out to children about their place in a fragile world.

12 The edible landscape of school, Catherine Burke

Obesity is becoming an epidemic. Here the pivotal role food should play within the educational curriculum is discussed with some inspiring examples of projects where cultivation and food production take place in the school grounds.