Lovell International School, The international kindergarten in Pattaya, Thailand, is the place where children can play and learn among the trees. The existing trees in the site are aged grown up trees with the mainly intention from owner and designer to keep most of them for the new school.
The layout design schematic started with option of planning with space and shape that bring up potential of the trees in the site and create most interesting atmosphere. The tree house concept is match with the design where the little house is pop up amidst the forest. The curve free flow building shape avoids the existing trees and provides the court which separate zoning to match with learning age. The building ground floor is separated mainly into 3 wings including under-3 years old children wing, kindergarten wing, and admission wing. With its own court for each wing together with outdoor learning space behind the classroom the building is surrounded by green in front of each classes are link by the indoor play space which can be use for many occasion such as during the PM2.5 problem situation or when bad weather like heavy rain and too hot sunshine due to the tropical climate. On the upper floor the tree house is pop up for each individual function, the cooking class, art class, soft gym together with the multipurpose hall. The space under the gable roof provides spacious space so many play frames are added up to create many different kind of playing space such as hideout space, play structure space, adventure space.
The interior of the school is provide cozy wooden atmosphere to harmonize the mood of little-house-in-the-big-wood feeling for all of the hall and indoor play space while in the classroom the white color is used for pleasant brightness for learning. The landscape area are separated into many zones which each court characteristic are based on the existing trees. Those include the play area for children under 3 years old and over 3 years old while back of the classroom also link with the green space for learning about agriculture and waste recycle. The water play area provide both swimming pool and splash pool where little kids can play and do many activities. The most tree density court is designed to be forest play area where adventure activities could be done.
