PBS 140 Child Care Center Design Guide - The Whole Building ...

CHAPTER 5: PLANNING FOR SPACE AND LOCATION
� The location must allow for all exits and entrances to be secured. Normally,
movement should be restricted through one main entrance and
perhaps an additional service entry. Where possible, maximum visibility
of entry points from inside the center should be provided.
� The location must be a defensible space with a secure perimeter and
controlled access.
� The security assessment may recommend the center entrance be separate
from the main building entrance in order to reduce congestion and
to address security considerations.
� The security assessment may recommend that a guard station should
be located near the center so that surveillance of comings and goings to
the center are easily seen by posted guards. Alternatively, a form of
surveillance will be provided.
5.8 Approach and Access
If possible, the center location should be within walking distance of public
transportation. Ensure that bicyclists and persons using mass transit also
have safe approaches to the building and do not endanger child or adult
pedestrians.
The center location should be within walking distance of the work place
and Federal transportation.
5.9 Historic Preservation
The decision to locate a center in a National Historic Building must take
into consideration the historic preservation requirements outlined in the
latest edition of GSA’s Facility Standards for the Public Buildings Service.
If located in a historic building, the GSA Region’s office responsible for
historic preservation must be contacted and made a part of the process at
an early stage of planning the center. Play yard location is also a vital
consideration in assessing the effect of the center location on historic
structures or neighborhoods.
5.10 Children’s Spaces
5.10.1 Classrooms:
A classroom is the architecturally defined area that contains each group of
children and their teacher(s). Classrooms may be separated by full partitions
or partial barriers that allow controlled visual or acoustical connections to
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other groups. However, at least one interior viewing panel, at children’s
height, is required both adjacent to corridors and between classrooms where
possible. The classrooms themselves should be as open as possible,
allowing supervision and the penetration of natural light. The classroom
contains the required spaces for all recommended activities, as well as
spaces for personal care. It should be flexible enough to support variable
demographics of the clientele as well as to allow program adjustments to
serve fluctuating demand for child care services. Adequate space is also
necessary for storing children’s and teacher’s personal items, curriculum
materials, supplies, and equipment. Space should conform to NAEYC
accreditation and local licensing requirements.
5.10.2 Common Spaces:
Spaces shared by more than one group are included in this category. The
designer needs to be cognizant that the child may spend very few hours of
the day in his or her home. The center becomes the “home away from
home” for the child . The design should convey this impression. A common
area that “feels” like the core of the center is an excellent organizing concept
and one which will dispel an institutional feeling, especially if it is treated in
a “home-like” way. This may be simply an area of the circulation that
provides a stopping place that allows social interaction. However, it should
not be the multi-purpose room. Circulation through the multi-purpose room
has proved to be an undesirable design feature.
Other common areas may consist of one or more of the following: multiplepurpose
area, large motor activity area, meeting/gathering area, and a
separate sick bay (if the latter is required to meet local licensing
requirements).
5.10.3 Play Yards:
Play yards are outdoor extensions of the classrooms, providing many of
the same opportunities as indoor spaces. Play yards should provide for a
variety of developmentally appropriate activities and include storage for
curriculum equipment as well as wheeled toys, trikes and wagons. Spending
time on the playground is undoubtedly the preferred activity of children.
Therefore, to the greatest extent possible, the designer should arrange
ease of access to the play yard from the classroom and maximum adult
supervision.
PBS-140 - July 2003