Lijia Kindergarten is located in the Lijia District of the north side of Chongqing, China. Perched on the south bank of Jialing River, the geographical advantage provides an open and beautiful view for the kindergarten. However, due to the restricted right-triangle shape site area, the architect needs to address those problems in the design while also creating as many playful spaces as possible for children.

Under the current circumstances, the volumes are piled up like staggered boxes to provide sufficient daily sunlight demand to meet the basic requirements for a kindergarten project. The structure consists of several concrete boxes between each of the childcare rooms. The stacked three-layer volumes are designed to be arranged backwards so that each childcare room can obtain an exclusive roof terrace for outdoor activities. The office area and main transition spaces such as stairwells and corridors are arranged in the north of the building. In addition, the outdoor corridors are designed to encourage kids to get close to nature and also contribute to form a continuous circulation. In general, the flexible volumes set up amusing spaces and ease the oppressive feeling brought by heavy masses.

Large curtain walls applied in the south and north façade achieve spatial integrity of the building, and also permit to take advantage of the sunlight and enjoy wonderful views of the river. Ceramic brick façades with apertures on both west and east sides permit moderate transparency of the façade, not only dissolve the pressure caused by the solid wall surface but also block the noise from the street and the strong sunlight from west.