SCHOOL GARDEN DESIGNS FOR EFFECTIVE CHILD DEVELOPMENT: THE CASE OF ÇANAKKALE CITY SCIENCE-MAT-ACADEMY COLLEGE

Abstract

Education is one of the most important elements in the lives of individuals. Education is effective in the formation of the characters of individuals. Education is carried out as a life plan of individuals. For this reason, schools, which are the areas where education is provided in the lives of individuals, are of great importance. School is the area where children spend most of their days, socialize, and acquire various characteristic features. The most important among the areas that cause these actions to occur are school gardens. Dec. School gardens are the areas where children spend a large part of their time. They are the places where they perform all actions and activities. Considering the importance of the place, the designs and planning of the school gardens are of great importance. For this reason, school gardens created with the right planning and design decisions have a direct impact on the physical, mental, spiritual, cognitive, and communicative development of children. It is extremely important to create activity areas that support children's mental development, playgrounds that support their physical development, and various social areas that increase their interaction with other users. School gardens, created with the right planning and design decisions, offer a safe environment as well as various physical and mental developments. At the same time, it is aimed that users receive education in a holistic environment with nature by ensuring a balance of green space and hard ground. School gardens are also recognized as open green spaces on an urban scale. Landscape designs in school gardens are important due to the mass of users. The preferred plant groups should be thorn-free, non-toxic, and fragrant plants that will attract the attention of the user audience. Within the scope of this study, Çanakkale City Science-Mat-Academy College (FMA) was selected as the research area. Field evaluation was carried out within the scope of the literature reviews. On-site observations and photographs were made within the area. The situation assessment was made by taking into account the school garden design criteria obtained in the literature review. As a result of the evaluations, solutions and design proposals for the Science-Mat-Academy College were presented.