SPATIAL THEORY
IN-BETWEEN SPACES OF LEARNING: A PYSCHO-SPATIAL READING OF THE APOLLO MONTESSORI SCHOOL
Introduction to the Framework
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The psycho-spatial framework refers to the way physical space interacts with the human body and mind. It looks at how architectural elements such as scale, layout, light, shadow, thresholds, textures, enclosure, and contrast influence emotions, perception, and memory. Through this lens, space is understood not as neutral, but as something that can shape how we think, feel, behave, and relate to others. For instance, built forms can subtly produce social norms that establish a certain authority over a group of people; or entering a place of worship often prompts silence without instruction; or how a particular seating arrangement and spatial orientation can alter one’s sense of freedom of expression.
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Sigmund Freud addresses this psychological dimension through his theory of The Uncanny (Unheimlich/Unhomely), which emerges when something familiar begins to feel strange or unsettling. He says it occurs when repressed memories resurface, making outgrown childhood beliefs suddenly appear real and unsettling.
Anthony Vidler extends this idea into architectural theory, arguing that modern architecture and contemporary cities, shaped largely by technological and metropolitan priorities, often generate feelings of ‘alienation’ and ‘detachment’ reflecting broader psychological anxiety and social instability within modern life.
Additionally, architectural pleasure lies in the relationship between the physical(body) and the conceptual(mind), Bernard Tschumi suggests. He sees in-between spaces as inherently ambiguous, evoking strangeness and unfamiliarity producing moments of shock and disjunction, that disrupt habitual ways of experiencing space; allowing new spatial understandings and experiences to emerge.
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While these theories explore extreme or disruptive spatial experiences, Herman Hertzberger applies their principles in a moderated way at the Apollo Montessori School, translating them into familiar, legible, and psychologically comfortable spaces that guide movement, interaction, and learning. He emphasises in-between spaces as social and informal learning areas, seen in wide corridors, level changes that double as seating, and enlarged classroom thresholds that support interaction, group activities and informal learning.
Introduction to the project​
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The Apollo Montessori School is located in Amsterdam-Zuid, a planned residential district in the southern part of the city. Built in the 1980s as part of Amsterdam’s post-war educational architecture, the school sits within a planned urban fabric rather than a historic core and functions as a neighbourhood anchor.
During this period, in context with Dutch architecture, institutional architecture was shifting away from modernist approaches toward more user-centred and socially responsive designs. At the same time, Montessori education was gaining recognition in the Netherlands, influencing interactive and autonomous learning environments.
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Hertzberger followed the principle of “one plus one,” creating spaces that simultaneously serve people and foster connection. This principle also reflects his approach to designing spaces where structuralism — understood as human-centred, adaptable design with interconnected communities — and adaptability over time work together, and where buildings can continue to function dynamically in the present and future, even as their use changes.
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Prior to studying the school in detail, it is crucial to discuss Montessori architecture— or rather, Montessori education. This educational approach, introduced in 1907 by Maria Montessori, an Italian physician and educator, looks at guiding children through self-directed learning and play across their key developmental domains. The core principles of this methodology are structured around independence and hands-on learning.
To translate these ideas into architecture, twenty-eight patterns were distilled to inform the design process of Montessori schools. Montessori architecture is more than a spatial concept; it supports autonomous movement through spatial choice through interconnected spaces, private corners and activity-focused lighting, and engaging the senses through thoughtful use of light and materials.
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Having studied at a Montessori school himself, Hertzberger had a strong understanding of child psychology and developmental learning. His respect for children as the primary users of the school is evident in the design strategies used in the Apollo schools, which closely align with the principles of Montessori architecture.
Analysing the Structure
Seven thematic intentions underpin the Dutch architect’s school designs, which we will examine alongside the study of this school. Designed in harmony with the large detached houses in the neighbourhood, the school is constructed using locally produced concrete blocks, a material typical of Hertzberger’s work. The east-facing entrance allows morning light to define the first spatial encounter with the building, creating a clear and positive initial impression. While older students enter the building via exterior stairways, infants have their own access on the ground floor beneath.
The staircase cascading from the entrance of the school expands to allow children to inhabit the threshold spaces between the inside and outside. At the top of the staircase, the curved steel rail encloses a large entry porch along with a bench set into the railing. The outer half of the staircase is steel-framed, with glass flooring and treads that allow light to pass through to the kindergarten entrance below.A hierarchy of interconnected spaces and circulation paths is designed to fulfil formal use requirements as well as allows the school to function as a small network of movement and interaction(school as a city), while responding to the child’s sensitivity to their environment—the “knowable space.” The classrooms, located one in each corner of a square, form a series of overlapping and interlocking spaces of varying sizes, heights, views, degrees of enclosure, and qualities of light. The elongated skylight illuminates the central greeting space which connects the four different storeys of classrooms.
ORDER OF CONNECTING FUNCTIONS AT TRANSITIONAL SPACES: WARDROBES, KITCHEN ISLANDS, SEATING-STEPS, SECLUDED STUDY CORNERS
VARYING FLOOR AND CEILING HEIGHTS: ARTICULATE THE SPACE BETTER
INTERACTION ACROSS LEVELS: FAMILIARITY WITH THE SPACE
ELONGATED SKYLIGHT AND FLOOR-TO-CEILING WINDOWS ALLOWING MAXIMUM ILLUMINATION
This careful articulation of circulation, thresholds, and entrances breaks the building into legible spatial units rather than a single undifferentiated volume(articulation of space into spatial units).
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Montessori architecture also emphasises the importance of varying floor and ceiling heights, as compression and expansion alter spatial perception, creating either intimacy or expressiveness. The central greeting space is composed of stepped seating arranged in an amphitheatre-like configuration, forming a central atrium that functions as an assembly space(town square) for both formal and spontaneous gatherings, as well as informal seating. This connecting space acts as a psychological transition from outside to inside and encourages activity and interaction. The use of wood for the steps introduces tactility and warmth and improves acoustic comfort, making the space more inviting in contrast to the harder concrete surfaces.
Outside each classroom is a wardrobe area designed at an ergonomic scale for children, which also functions as an intimate threshold between the classroom and the adjacent hall. The classrooms are slightly L-shaped, articulating space in a way that supports focused work while providing optimum floor area. Extensions of classrooms into the central meeting space, secluded corners with specialised work desks, and activity-based lighting allow children to work independently(scope for learning). Spatial cohesion is achieved through low walls that belong simultaneously to the classroom and the school, allowing activities to move across this layered boundary(spatial cohesion). Additional study spaces include bunkbed alcoves used for reading or resting(school as a home).
There is a clear distinction between making everything accessible to children and making everything child-sized. As Hertzberger emphasises, children strongly desire to become part of the adult world, and he therefore prefers making adult-sized elements accessible to them. This is evident in the placement of small freestanding kitchen islands within classrooms, equipped with a sink, storage, and space for food preparation or washing dishes. These elements articulate space without dividing it into detached units, as built-in objects structure space while maintaining continuity. Additionally, such elements are specifically designed to enable children to act independently.
The windowsills are designed such that they function as work surfaces as well as a step-up leading into the garden(playground as street), demonstrating the idea of the window as a “window place”, as described in A Pattern Language by Christopher Alexander. These spaces maintain a psychological connection to the outside world, supporting the idea of working “almost outside.”
Larger idea and Conclusion
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Viewed through the psycho-spatial framework, the Apollo Montessori School reads less as a fixed institutional building and more as a spatial system that accommodates gradual learning, movement, and everyday social interaction. The project demonstrates how scale, articulation, and spatial hierarchy can balance individual autonomy with collective life, particularly within a learning environment shaped by children’s sensitivity
to space.
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The framework reveals that the building’s effectiveness lies in its adaptability and legibility, allowing children to appropriate space according to changing needs while remaining oriented within the whole. In this sense, the Apollo Montessori School becomes a useful reference for understanding how human-centred architectural designs can support learning as an evolving, lived process rather than a predefined programme.