Ervin Early Learning Center

Ervin Early Learning Center

KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI

  • Hickman Mills School District
  • Renovation
  • 110,000 SF total
  • $7.5 million

Repurposing an abandoned middle school gave pre-kindergarten and kindergarten students a space their own focused on literacy.

Research shows that students who do not have an early education focused on literacy are more likely to struggle throughout school and into adulthood. This dedicated brain-based facility for young learners allowed the District to put an emphasis on this issue without committing more square footage to Kindergarten. It also gave the District more classroom space within each elementary school for older grade levels.

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Three Trails Preschool

Three Trails Preschool

RAYTOWN, MISSOURI

  • Raytown Quality Schools
  • Renovation
  • 32,600 SF
  • $2 million

Young learners are immersed in a bright, positive environment from the moment they enter this revamped environment. 

Each space comes alive with colorful nature scenes featuring animal friends on every wall. Students feel engaged and excited to learn in this updated learning environment. This abandoned Catholic school was given new life for its students and teachers.

Raytown Quality Schools was looking to expand its early childhood program after the overwhelming success of its first pre-kindergarten facility. Reimagining the interior of this tired school allows more preschool students the opportunity to start learning earlier, which research has shown leads to improved success throughout their academic and professional lives.

Joplin Early Childhood Center

Joplin Early Childhood Center

JOPLIN, MISSOURI

  • Joplin School District
  • New Construction
  • 37,500 SF
  • $8.7 million

After seven years in temporary classrooms, Joplin’s littlest learners finally have a home for learning and exploring. This is “Where it all Begins…”

Teachers can now collaborate together to utilize shared learning centers that are integral to their early education curriculum, rather than having to house these centers in their classrooms, which has freed up space in their rooms for more individual and group learning.

It was important for the Joplin community that their Early Childhood Center feels more like a home than a school to ease the transition for students. This space comes alive thanks to the integration of the environmental graphics. Students and visitors are immersed in a forest of trees and critters. The Learning Grove opens learners’ imaginations with construction and waterplay stations, as well as a tricycle track, blurring the lines between indoor and outdoor learning.

In May 2011, an F-5 tornado struck the city of Joplin, devastating the community. The District’s early childhood center is the last piece of Operation Rebuild.

AWARDS & RECOGNITION

  • IIDA Mid-America – Silver Award in K-12 Education
  • AIA Kansas City – Citation Award in Interior Architecture

Joplin Early Childhood Center

JOPLIN, MISSOURI

  • Joplin School District
  • New Construction
  • 37,500 SF
  • $8.7 million

After seven years in temporary classrooms, Joplin’s littlest learners finally have a home for learning and exploring. This is “Where it all Begins…”

Teachers can now collaborate together to utilize shared learning centers that are integral to their early education curriculum, rather than having to house these centers in their classrooms, which has freed up space in their rooms for more individual and group learning.

It was important for the Joplin community that their Early Childhood Center feels more like a home than a school to ease the transition for students. This space comes alive thanks to the integration of the environmental graphics. Students and visitors are immersed in a forest of trees and critters. The Learning Grove opens learners’ imaginations with construction and waterplay stations, as well as a tricycle track, blurring the lines between indoor and outdoor learning.

In May 2011, an F-5 tornado struck the city of Joplin, devastating the community. The District’s early childhood center is the last piece of Operation Rebuild.

St. Elizabeth Early Childhood Center

St. Elizabeth Early Childhood Center

KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI

  • St. Elizabeth Catholic School
  • Renovation/Addition
  • 20,000 SF
  • $4 million

DIOCESE OF KANSAS CITY-ST. JOSEPH CATHOLIC SCHOOLS

For years, the St. Elizabeth Early Childhood Center was located across a high-traffic street from the Catholic Church, calling for their youngest students to journey back and forth multiple times a day. Hollis + Miller designed a master plan for the Church, putting high priority on uniting the Early Childhood Center, K-8 school and the Catholic Church on the same side of the street. The new design does just that, providing peace of mind for staff and parents, and also allows opportunities for growth and adaptations in the future.

The renovated rectory building hosts eight new classrooms for pre-k and kindergarten students. The rectory, a residential home for members of the clergy, challenged the design team to develop innovative solutions transforming the space into a learning environment. The design incorporates research-based learning tools and showcases a touch of tradition with the existing stone walls of the rectory, as well as the connecting Church. The new early childhood center features a learning stair and sliding classroom walls for co-teaching, shared storage areas and indoor/outdoor collaboration spaces to expand fine motor skills. A large balcony serves as a flexible commons area and gathering space for students, staff and parish members.

Compass Montessori School

The impressive compass sculpture hanging from the exposed ceiling of the main corridor serves as a node, providing an interesting gathering space and guiding students to their new “home”, or learning environment.

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Learnscape-Raytown Quality Schools

LEARNSCAPE 2019

  • Raytown Quality Schools
  • New Trails Early Learning Center & Three Trails Preschool

Nestled between an early childhood center as well as an elementary school, our emerging professionals had to navigate designing for a variety of ages, from 3-11 years old.

The 2019 Learnscape takes students on a “journey” of experiential learning. Designated areas of grasslands, desert, lagoon, forest and a bird’s nest prompt learning about nature and the types of animals that inhabit each climate. The design team of emerging professionals put themselves in the perspective of young learners and used their imagination to develop an outdoor learning environment where students can play and learn.
An impressive shade structure is the anchor of the Learnscape, providing protection from direct sunlight and casting unique shadows. It was constructed of cedar to ensure increased durability, and stone planters can be found at the base, providing a natural boundary for the group teaching area. Sensory tables give students an outlet to refine their fine motor skills and participate in hands-on learning. The tables can be incorporated into curriculum and teachers can demonstrate activities or can be used for free play. The “forest” was designed so students can weave in and out of the “trees.” Designed from the perspective of a young child, the poles bow inward toward the top, giving the wondrous illusion of being surrounded by treetops when they gaze at the sky.