Structure & Freedom - A Montessori School in Georgetown

Abstract

The design challenge of this project was to create an engaging environment for learning; one that through its architecture, encourages discovery, sensory and intellectual development and stewardship of the environment.

This school seeks to embody the Montessori ideal of â structure and freedomâ . Through the design process, an â architecture of oppositesâ emerged â edges and endings, light and dark, solid and transparent, quiet and noise, city and nature, bridge and barrier. It is this struggle between opposing forces that creates a dynamic environment.

A site at the intersection of P and 26th Streets in Georgetown on the western edge of Rock Creek Park was chosen for the project because of its nature as a haven within an urban context.