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T he Krähenwinkel day care centre is located on the northern outskirts of Langenha-
gen in an area mainly characterised by single-family homes and gardens. The height
of the one-storey building blends in with this environment. However, its long wooden fa-
çades make it stand out. It is a relatively large building, with room for 105 children. In-
doors they can experience the outside in a special way. In spite of the varied and compact
room layout, the children, and of course the adults, always experience a connection to
the outside world. The floor plans are designed to give everyone plenty of space to move
around and explore the phenomena of nature, the course of the seasons and the natural
light that enters the open attic through the skylights and dormer windows. Each room
has an individual ceiling shape resulting from the special roof shape. The building is divi -
ded into three rows of rooms. The group rooms for the children are located in the sout-
hern rows. From here, the funnel-shaped entrance leads directly into the centre of the
building. In the south there is a large green outdoor area, which the children can use for
playing. In the central part there are open wardrobes, washrooms and an activity room.
This central part of the day care centre offers a wide view of the surroundings. To the
north are the administration rooms, utility rooms and a creativity room. The cafeteria is
al so located here, from where the children can enjoy the view over the extensive green Fotos: Jan Bitter, Berlin
area of the "aircraft noise zone" of Hanover-Langenhagen Airport, from which they are
protected by acoustic insulation, but which allows them an inspiring view of the land-
scape. The rows of rooms are offset against each other so that their structure is visible Kinder bringen ihre Ideen in Fühlkästen zum Ausdruck. • Children express their ideas in feeling boxes.
from the outside. They are connected by long corridors that repeatedly expand into larger
play areas where the children can let off steam. This layout results in walking, circular
and exploration paths. The whole day care centre is a complex space for movement, so Im Planspiel werden Visionen und Wünsche strukturiert. • A simulation game structures visions and wishes.
to speak. Even though the building has a wooden façade, its outer walls are built of solid
stone. In contrast, the wooden roof with its dynamic ups and downs, which can also be
seen in the interior, has a light appearance. This structure allows a large number of sky-
lights and dormer windows, which literally set highlights in the rooms. As with all con-
struction projects of the Baupiloten, the participation of the users, the children, their pa-
rents and the nursery school teachers, played an important role in the planning process.

Participation as design method

Even though we as architects ultimately designed the building and supervised its con-
struction, the users were able to contribute their ideas of the world in which they
would work and spend their day in the future. The result of the joint workshops and
consultations was the claim that light should play an important role in the building.
The house should not be too colourful, but should encourage the children to explore
their surroundings. For example, there should be a "light play in the dwarf house" and
"a sheltered walk through the sunlight". A special workshop held with the children
then opened up opportunities to develop rest and retreat areas, but also exploration
paths for the children, which often resulted in the dual use of some of the furniture.
Cabinet compartments have secret passage doors and the desks of the teachers are si-
multaneously children's dens. The children also find passageways in the walls that are
not accessible for adults. This enables them to explore the rooms in their own safe and Die Bedürfnisse werden mittels Bildern abgefragt. • The needs are inquired by means of pictures.
secure way. Colours have been used very subtly and are well coordinated with each
other. They are mainly used for orientation. Natural light was specifically used in the
one-storey building. The skylights have a cladding of colour effect glass (dichroic glass)
in their reveals, which reflect the incident light rays in different colours depending on
the angle of incidence. A lot can be learned about the position of the sun and the light
spectrum. Reflections and mirror effects are also created by the cladding of piping laid
in the corridors and whose sheathing has become periscopes. Since I founded Baupi-
loten in 2002 in cooperation with the TU Berlin, participatory design has been part of
their architectural concept. They worked at the interface between teaching and prac-
tice within the framework of a study reform project. With the support of trained archi-
tects, students were able to work on real planning projects, especially for schools and
day care centres. It was essential that the knowledge, experience and wishes of the
users were directly incorporated into the design process, i.e. that their expertise was
used for the design. The cooperation with the university made it possible to reflect,
question and optimise the methods used. The architects and students were gradually
able to acquire what sociologist Helga Nowotny called "socially robust knowledge",
which enabled them to design architecture that conforms to the wishes of the users
without them having to make specific comments on shapes, materials or colours, but
instead to place these decisions in the hands of the architects with confidence.

AIT 5.2020 • 109