Tag: Hong Kong

Li Tsz Hei Darrel

TINKERING SCHOOL

The New School in Tai O seeks to engage the community as a maker space, enabling local Hong Kong students and residents of Tai 0 to collaborate on improvements within their own town.

Stilt houses and wooden platforms extend from the concrete path that curves around the riverbank in Tai O. These structures reveal their fragility through the wooden stilts that necessitate regular upkeep and their metal surfaces, which are built using low-tech methods. The project transforms an existing dyke into a dynamic learning environment.

.

Cheng Fei Wan Anthea, BA(AS), Hong Kong University, HKU, Spring 2025

Forest of Play: A Multisensory Learning Hub in Tai O

This project envisions an inclusive and adaptive educational environment inspired by the principles of forest school-a child-centred pedagogy that prioritizes experiential, play-based, and nature-immersed learning.

Situated within the forested landscape of Tai O, the design redefines the classroom as a living, breathing extension of its natural surroundings. Rather than relying on fixed spaces and standardized teaching methods, the architecture encourages movement, sensory exploration, and deep engagement with the environment.

Elevated among the trees, this multisensory learning hub supports children in an inclusive education program. Such learning spaces are traditionally overlooked or misunderstood in the conventional Hong Kong classrooms. In a culture where academic success is narrowly defined, well-being and different types of learning have not been accepted by the mainstream school model. This project responds with an alternative empowering learners of all ages with the knowledge, skills, values, and agency to make informed decisions and take responsible actions to adapt and mitigate the impacts of the climate crisis

Learnings spaces are central places for accelerating climate action among learners and local communities. The Non-profit school is situated in the hills of Tai O, responding to several conditions and experiences.

Tai O’s unique ecological and cultural context-where over 70% of the land remains green-the school blends into its forest setting, echoing the quiet order found in what may first appear as natural chaos.

The architecture becomes part of the terrain, not imposed upon it. Tree branches guide circulation, roots inspire spatial logic, and canopies provide shelter for learning. Here, education becomes an adventure: students move, touch, listen, and imagine. The boundaries between architecture, nature, and learning dissolve, fostering curiosity, resilience, and independence. The forest becomes the teacher, the classroom, and the curriculum.