Kočevje Kindergarten

The kindergarten built in Kočevje on brownfield land regenerates part of town by condensing programme previously dispersed in unfit buildings and is providing a new learning environment that emphasizes the children’s freedom of choice by creating various nooks, the right to privacy with spaces of seclusion, the possibility of learning by observing other users of the kindergarten, development of spatial sensitivity through diverse spatial experiences.

The irregularly shaped façade nooks soften the building and place children as actors in the living façade, where everybody wants to play in windows, inviting playful interaction and engagement with the architecture itself. This sense of connection continues inside, where younger children stay on the ground floor with a direct connection to the exterior playground, allowing seamless movement between indoor and outdoor spaces.

The kindergarten envelope closes towards the urban northern side of the plot, creating one appearance and opens to the southern playground exposing the warm timber interior of the playrooms creating a dialogue with its context.

The building itself organizes units around two atria – "puddle" and "hill" – that allow for light to reach the deep ground floor plan and add to the spatial experiences, with younger children staying on the ground floor with a direct connection to the exterior playground while the older children's home rooms inhabit the first floor with direct access to the roof playground. This way the footprint of the building is minimized while creating enough exterior playground area and direct access for all playrooms.

The building is protected by a wooden ventilated façade finished with thermally treated spruce, a durable skin that weathers naturally while maintaining structural integrity. The kindergarten achieves Passivhaus standards in part through district heating powered by local wood biomass, tying energy efficiency to regional material cycles, and is constructed almost entirely of wood and wood-based materials, including cross-laminated timber exposed on the interior, emphasizing sustainability and warmth throughout the building.