Abstract:
This thesis examines blended indoor/outdoor educational spaces for children in public school from fi rst to sixth grade. This next-generation school features a hybridization of indoor and outdoor learning spaces which blur the line between both educational settings – building and nature. These hybrid spaces, referred to collectively as a forest-school, enable a fl exible curriculum with connections to nature through large expanses of glazing and direct access to the site via operable doors and windows. Located in Middletown, IN, Fall Creek Woods Forest-School is situated on a site that has a mix of forested land and restored prairie for exploration and study. The goal of this thesis is to push current defi nitions of public educational architecture and support the increasingly positive statistics which affi rm the value of indoor/outdoor educational environments.
