Valdadige Primary School
Located in Mompiano, just before the protected landscape of Colle di San Giuseppe, the new Valdadige school responds directly to its surroundings. Its design emerges from a careful reading of the site topography, the surrounding building scale, and the relationship with the adjacent historical school.
The building is organized as a compact, two-storey linear volume oriented east-west. This arrangement responds to both the specific conditions of the plot and the taller residential buildings facing the site. At the same time the new volume maintains a restrained scale creating a respectful dialogue with the historical school building while fitting naturally into the neighbourhood. The building’s position along the northern edge of the plot frees up the maximum amount of open space to the south.
The classroom block and the gymnasium form a single, seamless volume. Organised around a modular plan, the layout clearly separates served and servicing spaces, with the dimension of a single classroom that is used as the repeating module across the entire length of the plan. Following the INDIRE framework of "1+4 Educational Spaces," the interior is designed as a system of flexible, adaptable environments that support both standard teaching routines and informal learning.
The plan is structured into three parallel bands: the north band, the central band and the south band. Taking each of these areas in turn, starting with the northern section, it contains the vertical circulation system, restrooms, and secondary facilities, so these are identified as servicing spaces.
Proceeding to the central band, it functions as the primary linear circulation path and, finally, addressing the South band, it contains all main spaces, identified as served spaces. The ground floor hosts the agora, while the upper floor contains the classrooms and informal learning zones.
On the ground floor, an outdoor porch leads into the agora, an open meeting area designed for school gatherings and community participation. On the upper floor, flexible learning spaces accommodate both individual and group work under generous natural light. At the centre of the classrooms lies a large informal area that acts as the heart of the educational layout. This flexible space caters to personalized teaching, small group activities, and collaborative multi-class projects. Along the southern edge of the upper level, a continuous balcony extends the interior spaces outdoors. Protected by a perforated brick screen that filters direct sunlight, this elevated patio mediates between inside and outside, offering a shaded setting for outdoor learning in direct continuity with the garden and educational vegetable patch below. The combination of top lighting from skylights and filtered lateral light provides balanced, high-quality illumination throughout the learning spaces.
The rectangular gymnasium breaks away from the three-band scheme to accommodate a regulation volleyball court. A regular sequence of skylights ensures uniform natural light across the playing area, while a folded roof profile improves acoustic comfort by reducing sound reflections. In addition to the main hall, the sports facility includes three changing rooms with showers and dedicated equipment storage. Independent access allows the gymnasium to function outside school hours as a shared amenity for the local community.
