programmingdocument

iar 411 : fall 2010 : ghanaian primary school

heather link : leah petriccione
table of contents
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› purpose/opportunity
› critical issues
› user profile
› area profile
› activity requirements
› furniture requirements
› wayfinding
› spatial adjacencies

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› sensory experience
› spatial requirements
› material analysis
› concept exploration

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› water tank building process

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› precedent studies

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› sources
process sketches

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purpose & opportunity user profile activity requirements
› learning space
design a classroom in kyekyewere, ghana for approximately 30 students › 30+ students: ghanain children ages 5-14, grade levels 1-6
› teaching space
of varying ages, but between first and sixth grades. › 1+ teachers: usually european, sometimes ghanaian
› playing space
› hands-on moments
the space should be physically engaging and mentally stimulating for › languages: asante twi (native), english (spoken in schools)
› eating area?
both children and teachers.
› restrooms / hygiene / access to water
› religions: majority are christians
› outdoor / recreation
should provide opportunity for both individual and group/community
character development, as well as hands-on learning. › occupations: majority are farmers (others are carpenters, masons, or

all building materials used should be appropriate in terms of location

teachers) furniture requirements
› student seating & surface
availability and sustainability. › teacher seating & surface
› storage
*the school should be fun for children to attend, and respond directly
to their needs.
area profile › chalkboard
› pin-up/display pieces
kyekyewere, ghana, africa
› part of the asante region
critical issues › right above equator
› tropical climate
wayfinding
› child engagement › 2 rainy seasons: april-july, september-november › furniture arrangement
› limited material availability › blackboard placement
› sustainability › population: about 3,500 › play vs. work space
› air circulation (about 1,900 female, about 1,600 male) › indoor vs. outdoor
› electricity/technology availability (most likely none) › area (sq km): › space paths, nodes, edges light/shadow
› access to running/clean water (none currently) › nearby: kumasi (1 hour drive)
› light / shadow › transportation: foot, cars, tro-tros (public mini bus), plane, boat
› sensory experience › plants: tall silk cottons, kolas, mohogany, odum, ebony (forests),
shea trees, acacias, baobabs, oil palms (savannahs)
spatial adjacencies
› sense of community
› rainy/dry seasons › animals: antelope, baboons, buffalo, cobras, gazelle, hippopotami,
› highly varied age range of children hyenas, lions, leopards, jackals, pythons
› northeastern winds (harmattan) › site profile:
› budget (depends on fundraising/grants) › location: unknown
› size: 4 acres of land
(donated by Chief Nana Boakye Ababio)
*land has gently rolling plains
› temperature/rainfall:
› average temperature: 26ºC
› average yearly rainfall: 736.6mm
› per month:

desirable
semi-desirable
undesirable

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sensory experience material analysis
earth-bag construction
› natural building technique, first started as military bunker construction method (they are bulletproof)
› requires simple materials: study sacks filled with sand, gravel, clay, or crushed volcanic rock
› bags stacked and layed similar to bricks
› can be reinforced with barbed wire or twine wrapping the bags; finished with cement

onduline
› lightweight but extremely tough corrugated roofing
› manufactured by bitumen-saturated organic fibres under intense pressure and heat
› absorbs noise from rain better than steel
› factory located in south africa

sugar cane (osb)

› any available sugar cane
› fibers used to make osb (oriented strand board) flooring

spatial requirements beams/columns

› group rooms (minimum: 5.1 sq. m/child) › any available standard construction grade wood
› support areas (minimum: 1.4 sq. m/child) › needed in 30 x 5 cm, and 30 x 1 cm thicknesses
› circulation/service areas (minimum: 1.7 sq. m/child)
other materials needed:
› total building area: (minimum: 8.2 sq. m/child) › yellow paint
› chalkboard paint
*information from interior graphic standards, pg. 396 › concrete for foundation/columns
› wood/fabric for desks/seats
› packing peanuts/other recycled material for seat filling
› various screws/fasteners

concept exploration
orbit, wrapping, encapsulate, nurturing/motherly, cradling, symbiotic

the classroom should be form-fitting to both the students’ and teachers’ needs. while the occupants need
the space, the space needs the occupants—creating a symbiotic relationship. the classroom should nurture
the students and allow them to grow and expand not only with knowledge but with body and soul, improving
their quality of life through their time spent inside the ”cradle.”

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a hole is dug and cemented to create the tank. (can also be an above ground structure)
villagers are also educated on how to construct the tanks themselves, using simple materials.

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a filter is made using bamboo tubing.

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the filter and lid are placed and sealed on top of the tank.

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filter piled with rocks to prevent standing water and keep mosquitoes out.

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a gutter system and pvc pump allow clean water to be pumped to the surface!
over 10 water tanks have now been constructed in ghana.

waterforghana.org 5
precedent studies
brandon rodgers: bush studio & earth bag home (ghana)
an orlando, florida native, brandon rodgers left his design firm cubicle job and moved to ghana to design and ./studio 3 at innsbruck university: olifantsvlei school (south africa)
build houses using alternative building methods and indigenous materials. his first project was his own work- this primary school in johannesburg, south africa encourages excersize, adventure, and curiosity. students
space, which he calls “bush studio” (first image seen below). the walls are constructed out of stone and mud can play, climb, and explore colorful window cut-outs and angled wall crevaces. independent roof structure
blocks, topped with a metal butterfly roof for collecting rain water. his second project (second image) is a house allows maximum air-flow in africa’s hot climate.
made using earth bag construction—polypropelene bags filled with earth. walls like these which are finished
with cement, end up being 20” thick, can resist the elements, provide excellent insulation, and are even bul-
letproof.

source: http://inhabitat.com/2010/09/22/inhabitat-reader-builds-sustainable-homes-in-ghana/
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sources
earth bag construction
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earthbag_construction
http://inhabitat.com/2010/09/22/inhabitat-reader-builds-sustainable-homes-in-ghana/

onduline roofing : africa

http://www.onduline.co.za:8080/Onduline/

sugar can fiber/osb

http://www.canefibertech.com/tilby_tech.htm

travel/nearby cities info

http://www.climatetemp.info/ghana/kumasi.html
http://www.info-ghana.com/transportation.htm

nature/geography
http://www.listofcountriesoftheworld.com/gh-animals.html
http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/geography/nature.php

water for ghana project

http://www.waterforghana.org

habitat for humanity : ghana

http://www.habitatghana.org