Sambou Toura Drame

The concept after Reviewing the School’s current premise and environment takes into consideration 4 main aspects: local materials; passive sustainable techniques; improvement of commonly basic building techniques used in the area; the development of an interactive education model aimed at strengthening the children-school active engagement which will reflect positively on the social connections in Marsassoum.

Layout

Floorplan - 01: Classroom 02: Library 03: Teachers Office 04: Director Office 05: Playground 06: Kitchen 07: Latrine 08: Orchard 09: Compost 10: Corral

When accessing the school from the west entrance, students, teaching staff and other visitors will arrive in a small open lobby which opens up to an embedded playground that provides colorful amenities for the children. In consideration of the climate, the playground uses a locally produced cloth to shelter the children in the playground from the strong sun. The well-known tree – an icon itself - adjacent to the play- ground is a start point for a small farm which will supply the canteen of the school with fresh and healthy aliments. This yard separated two corridors between north and south through a barricade made of tires and cob. The tires are filled with soil and students are encouraged to plant their preferred flowers and take care of the nurturing process of the plants as to develop a deeper connection with nature and sustainable plants diversity. The corridors allow school staff to easily reach their offices directly from the entrance. In the north-west area, a bountiful library is located at the corner of the building together with 3 classrooms adjacent and other 4 mirrored towards the south corridor. At the very end on the east side a kitchen will provide direct access to the farm area which is located in the upper arm of the “U” shape formed by the school premise, allowing also space for poultry in the lower arm.

A tilted roof spans above the whole structure to protect the school from the heavy summer rains, also be utilized to collect and store a large amount of water to water tanks below, located between the last class- rooms and the kitchen, to be redirected to the kitchen and classrooms and used when needed.

To maintain a mild internal temperature during the whole year the school will feature shading devices for walls facing the direct sun and use sophisticated wind flow models such as “malqaf” and smaller versions in each classroom.

Yard Play

Yard Exhibition

Yard Theatre

Sustainability

Sun Study

March

May

September

December

Considering the climate of Marsassoum, Senegal it is key to maintain a mild internal temperature. Shading methods are used among the walls facing the south and west, such as wall patterns that keep direct sunlight away and a plantation that can cope with the local climate to further shade and cool through natural process of evaporating water. Further the roof is lifted from the rooms for hot air to excess directly. Ensuring that the angle doesn’t rise too high giving direct sunshine access inside the rooms we concluded a sun study of the walls and room during the months the school is operating in equal periods.

Wind Study

April - October

November - March

From April to October the wind mostly blows from the southwest where openings in the wall guarantee free flow. From November till March the direction changes towards the northwest, where a neighboring building is blocking a direct flow inside the building. For that scenario we usa a malqaf, a risen chamber, that guides the wind to the bottom of the room.

Rainwater

Using the angle of the roofrainwater is guided towards a tank on each side, which afterwards can be used to water the orchard, and eventually for cooking and drinking. Considering the huge amount of rainfall over a short period only it’s not possible to rely completely on the storaged water, but decreases the amount delivered externally significant.

Section AA'

Section BB'

View Corner

View Playground

View Classroom

View Classroom