In Munich’s “creative district” Behnisch Architekten designed a five-track primary school for up to 500 children with a double sports hall, a house for children and an underground carpark. The building was consistently designed according to the Munich Learning House concept, organizing pupils of all ages in small units, the learning houses . Open room structures offer a wide range of learning landscapes and encourage a lively school community.
In order to protect as many parts of the building as possible from the traffic noise of the Schwere-Reiter Strasse, the individual building structures form a differentiated spatial edge to the Infanteriestrasse. In the north, the two-storey sports hall marks the starting point, followed by the three-storey primary school building, slightly set back to perserve existing trees, and the one-storey house for children in the south. The three buidling areas are accessed separately from the publicly-open forecourt. New outdoor facilities with greenery, play areas and public footpaths on the south, link existing elements and the newly planned areas of experience, while creating a transparency between the school and the surroundings. In this way, the school life will be carried both into the school building and out of it.
The five learning houses are grouped around a central, spacious stairwell, forming a star shape. Each unit has its own entrance area giving a distinctive adress and hosts around hundred pupils.
The school building develops around the central core, which forms the vertical and horizontal access- and orientation axis and the place for encounter offering divers visual links. From here, all areas are accessed easily. The green roofscapes provide space for the school garden, smaller events, seating and further utilizations.
The façade is an encompassing yet differentiated element, which brings all building areas together, and allows the appearance to stay lively and dynamic.