日本靜岡御殿場　高嶺之森幼兒園

Children’s Forest is a nursery school to hold children between the age of 0 to 5, planned on a forest hill at the foot of Mount Fuji. On our first visit, the site was filled with Hinoki trees with dappled sunlight penetrating scarcely through the branches casted plentiful light bubbles overlapping each other on the ground, from which we got inspired to design a sunlit place softly floating in the woods. Its topographical feature the undulating slope and the hill rising up to 3-4 meters to the west of the site was another important element to retain, as we believed such environmental aspects are significant for the children to experience as part of the education.

高嶺之森為一學齡介於 0 至 5 歲幼兒為主的幼兒園，座落於日本富士山山腳的一處森林山丘。設計團隊初次造訪當地時，看見扁柏遍布的景象，當陽光穿透層層樹枝，於地面灑下斑駁光點，這般景色啟發團隊設計一處陽光照耀的地方，使其看似輕柔地漂浮於林間。此外，該地區西側起伏的斜坡和高達 3 至 4 公尺的山丘地形是另一個需要保留的重要元素，因為團隊相信這些環境因素是孩子們在教育方面一部分相當重要的體驗。

The rooms for each age group and other programs such as temporary care or teachers’ lounge are made as separate cubical units sitting on varying ground level and angles, oriented to frame its own view of natural scenes around - wide grass field spread out in front of the rooms of 2-5 year- olds for direct and easy access whenever children want to run around, along with the 8-meters-tall symbolic tree to sit under and the hill to climb with a small tunnel to crawl into; forest and woods embracing rooms that needs a rather calm atmosphere; sky changing its color over the trees always visible from the open courtyard beside the hall, etc.

每間教室皆為獨立的立方單元，分別設置於不同地坪高度並面向不同方位，以供各年齡層的孩童及其他活動使用，可進行臨時照護或作為教師休息室。該案在自然環繞之下，所有教室皆有獨立景觀。比方說，2 至 5 歲的幼兒教室前方享有整片寬闊的草地，讓孩子們能隨心在其中奔跑；園內有高達 8 公尺的標誌樹木供孩子坐在下方乘涼，還有一座帶有小型坑道的山丘可以爬上爬下。另外，需要寧靜氛圍的教室享有森林及樹木環繞，而大廳旁的開放式庭院則能清楚觀察天空的顏色變化。

These volumes are interconnected inward by ramps and in-between spaces, creating interior landscape where children can play, crawl or climb in a more comfortable and safer condition even in bad weather. A multipurpose hall capable of holding up to 150 people is located in the center surrounded by the room units that everyone can easily get together for a daily playtime or events. Despite the large covering over the hall, the skylights on the eaves and the gaps appearing between the roof and box units allow natural light and glimpses of greenery stream into the interior space and connect people inside visually and physically to the environment.

這些建築量體由坡道和內部空間彼此連繫，創造出一個讓人感到舒適且安全的室內景觀，既使遇到天氣不佳的日子，孩子們也能在此自在地玩耍、爬行及攀爬。其中，位於建築中心的大廳受到房間包圍，不僅能容納 150 人，也方便人們聚集在此處度過日常遊戲時間或舉辦活動。儘管大廳上方有大面積的天花覆蓋，仍然能藉由屋簷上的天窗以及介於屋頂和立方單元之間的縫隙，將自然光和綠意引入內部空間，從而讓身在室內的人們感受到與環境的緊密連結。

The open courtyard, furnished with a wooden deck, is accessible from the hall providing a safe playground especially for the youngest members not yet ready to run around in a larger lawn. On the other side of the hall, older and more active children would enjoy climbing the bouldering, up where it connects to the back yard on a higher ground level, embraced by the forest. Integrated with its rich natural context, we wish this garden of children provides a warm and healthy environment for the little ones to grow up with some good memories from the forest.

從大廳可通往開放式庭院，該區域選用木甲板鋪設地面，為尚未準備好要在草地上奔跑的幼齡學童提供安全的遊戲場域。而在大廳另一側，年齡較長且活潑好動的孩子能享受攀岩的樂趣，該區域的後方與地勢較高的後院連結，擁有森林環繞的景緻。綜觀整體，設計團隊希望透過將建築與自然元素融合，帶給孩子們溫暖且健康環境，讓他們在成長過程中伴隨來自森林的美好回憶。