Winton Hills Academy

Narratives

Architect Narrative

Thoughtful accommodation of the Cincinnati Public School (CPS) program, partnership programs with community agencies and the needs of Kindergarten — 8th grade children were all considered to create a building that would become an oasis for learning in this blighted urban neighborhood.

The CPS program arranges 4 classrooms around an Extended Learning Area (ELA) to be used as a ‘break-out’ space for more flexible class instruction. We paired two of these pods together so the programmed ELA space for 2 pods could be combined into one larger, more flexible ELA. Also, by reducing the number of pods from 5 to three, we were able to create three distinct neighborhoods within the school community.

At the center of the community is a spine housing two courtyards flanked by the shared functions of the art room, the media center and the music room. This spine is the singular organizing element of the pods. On one side of the spine is the pod for the Pre-K/Kindergarten children and the pod for the lower grade children; on the other is the pod for the upper grade children in this K-8 school. Because the youngest children are kept nearest the entry and separated from the older children, their learning environment seems much smaller and easily manageable. Organizing the pods immediately across from a courtyard also assists in navigating through the school making light-filled destinations where they spend most of their time. Each pod is given its own identifying color and an annual art project of painting the fixed, alternating plywood panels outside the pod gives the children ownership and pride in their pod.

The courtyards are also to be used for special class projects. The courtyard immediately adjacent the art room is equipped with a garage door to allow art class to spill over for larger or messier projects. A planting project is also in the works in collaboration with the Civic Garden Center of Cincinnati so the children can help beautify and care for their new school. Along the courtyards nearest the entry and adjacent the pods of the upper grade children are window seats for small group study and casual conversation.

The massing of the building reinforces the clarity of the parti in its identifiable massing of the classroom pods and applying opposing language to the shared functions flanking the courtyards. The cafeteria and the health clinic (located within the administration area) are given special, more playful treatment as these are functions also used by the community.

Likewise, the interior palate was chosen to make the most of typical school building materials; and it doesn’t hurt that we were inspired by what the kids requested, “A rainbow in their school.” Upon entering the school, you are introduced to all of the colors in the palette as well as the values of the school located in the cove. Although, the floor pattern was chosen to be colorful, it was also designed in response to the Direct Instruction method of moving the children through the corridors in single file. On one side, they follow the blue line, on the other the pattern of orange squares. Likewise, the cabinetry in the ELAs is alternating colors to reflect the patterning of the panel art project outside the ELAs.

Educator Narrative

Winton Hills Academy (WHA) is based upon the Cincinnati Public School’s (CPS) vision of a “Standards Based Model” (SBM) using a curriculum of Direct Instruction (DI) as our teaching methodology. We also stress the importance of character education/ values, the benefits of a safe and orderly environment, and community involvement to facilitate learning. Our goals for this new facility include a safe, warm welcoming environment which facilitates our teaching methodology. Order, pattern and color are integrated to make it a fun, lively and light filled environment which becomes a beacon of sorts for our children and this community. Through the design of this school we have developed important community partners which we hope will help remove some of the barriers to learning.

CPS is undergoing a facility master plan implementation with a pre-K to 8 as their model, the organization of our plan separates the younger children from the older children by pods. At the center of CPS’s revitalization is the SBM which is a pod type arrangement of four classrooms built around an “Extended Learning Area” (ELA). The group ELA’s are linked, although each classroom is enclosed with walls. This design lends itself to flexible groupings of students to better focus on individual learning needswhich is especially important with the DI model to help students reach academic standards because not all students learn the same way or at the same rate.

DI is based upon the concept of nurture as a more important force in educating children than nature or predisposition. Nurture asserts that the environment is the primary variable accounting for learning. DI teaches skills communicated with logical precision in discrete child-sized portions; careful measurement of mastery; rapid correction of mistakes; strict schedules; an early emphasis on phonics and computation and a lot of review to integrate old skills with new. This leads to mastery a step at a time. DI is based on the teacher being in face to face contact with the students, often in small groups in a semi-circle. The teacher is in control of the interaction telling, showing, modeling, demonstrating and promoting active responses from the students. The program functions as a stairway, students must master each step before moving ahead. The students must also be grouped and regrouped according to their skill levels. The arrangement of the flexible pod with the ELA allows us to do this efficiently within our groups. We have found that DI helps greatly with student discipline — since the children are so busy and are provided with appropriate challenges which they can be successful with.

One of our mottos at WHA is “We will excel academically and socially by creating a caring community through character education” - this must be provided in a safe and orderly environment. A band of words (Respect, Consideration, Self- Control, Readiness and Responsibility) greets the children upon entrance. Security of the children is at the fore with the provision of two interior courtyards for supervised outdoor play. The courtyards also bring natural light into the corridors, spilling over into the ELA’s. Planting done by the children in the courtyard provides a metaphor for the children’s development of germinating, growing and blossoming. School wide routines promote positive models and provide the basis of the students being proud of their school.