Amanenomori Nursery School

The etymology of the name of a kindergarten in the city of Funabashi, Japan, (“Amane” = “round,” “around” or “all-around”), represents the circular shape of the two-storey building with rooftop terrace catering for 160 children.
The design of the circular ring shaped structure provides enjoyable playground for children and easy access to escape route in case of emergency, having the courtyard in the middle, planting trees along the outer edge, and installing the deck, slopes, stairs, and the bridge along the circle, between them.
Placing the administration and staff offices, and the kitchen on the border between entrance and nursery space achieves both simplicity and security. The O-shaped building surrounds the courtyard with a wooden-decked corridor with eaves for weather protection, which also helps busy parents to drop and pick up their children quickly without taking off shoes.
The outdoors area of each floor provides also various spatial changes, such as slopes, hills and cavities, accessible so that children can explore them throughout the whole year here without getting bored. The half-circle-shaped vegetable garden develops children’s appreciation and interest toward food, as it is placed on the rooftop above the glass-walled kitchen on the first floor. The floor level of kitchen is settled lower to let children look into kitchen.
Round chamfering was done for walls and railings necessary for safety reasons. The main materials, wood, steel and stone, kept their original texture, while the building uses bioclimatic principles such as geothermal heat, rainwater reuse, solar panels’ power and cooling through vegetation, offering yet another lesson to the children.

Aisaka Architects’ Atelier