Pizzigoni Middle School
The area surrounding Milan was once occupied by farmlands and fragments of lowland forest. The project for the green areas of the Pizzigoni School, carried out together with IN-NOVA STUDIO, aims to revive this hidden landscape layer, reconstructing the edge of a Lombard forest that dialogues with the countryside.
With this approach, the school garden will not be a mere decorative space, but an integral part of the learning environment, the place for innovative and participatory teaching, which includes environmental and food education.
To select tree and shrub species, we took the vegetation of Parco Nord and that of the Olona river basin as a reference, because they are both very close to the project area.
The tall trees (birch, maple and hornbeam) are the green backbone of the garden and help to create the general character and build the spaces. At the same time, they shelter the glazed spaces from direct sunlight and with their foliage they ensure that on the upper floors there will still be a strong contact with nature.
Low trees (apple, maple and willow trees) help to characterize the specific spaces, define points of interest and create shade.
The shrubs perform a living and interactive scenography function. They delimit small green rooms, in order to define more intimate environments and guarantee spaces for concentration. With their different colors, shapes and smells, which change from season to season, they will awaken the students’ interest in the world of nature.
The orchard and the spaces intended for educational agriculture represent real outdoor workshops, in which to address issues such as food and environmental education.
Outdoor lessons are an essential feature of a truly contemporary school, go here to see some of my outdoor learning workshops!
Year:
- 2019
International competition:
- 2nd prize
Collaboration:
- IN-NOVA studio
Piano-terra-scuola-Pizzigoni
masterplan-scuola-Pizzigoni
The entrances to the school are designed as a filter area between the school and the city, a space where parents can wait for their children to leave while sitting in the shade of trees and shrubs.
The courtyard is the green heart of the school, the space around which the students' daily life revolves. It takes the form of a clearing surrounded by a fragment of Lombard forest.
Birches, maples, wild cherries, hazelnuts will mark the cycle of the seasons with their blooms and the change in color of the leaves. The fruits and seeds will attract birds.
Much more than accessory spaces, the clearings in the garden are thought as real outdoor classrooms, where students will experience outdoor learning, an educational approach focused on the interaction between students and the natural environment. Spaces for play and learning, with permeable anti-trauma flooring and surrounded by shrubs of various shapes and colors.
The circle in the woods is the space for participatory teaching, a didactic approach in which the teacher acts as a facilitator of a collaborative learning process, stimulating and guiding the debate. This cozy corner is designed for education for active citizenship, but also for outdoor theater and music lessons.
The open canteen during the summer will allow students to have lunch outdoors, under the foliage of the trees. On particular occasions, it can also become a meeting place for the neighborhood community.
In the educational orchard, students will be able to observe the cycle of nature and learn about the fruit-growing tradition of their territory. The trees chosen will be of forgotten varieties typical of the Lombardy region, such as the pom zucheret pom apple, the cured pear and the Lombard cherry maggenga.
The terrace at the top of the school is a hanging agricultural garden, overlooked by a laboratory, the library and an open-air theater. Each class will have a vegetable bed to take care of, while an equipped pergola will be the perfect place to deal with issues such as environmental and food education.
