Eaton International School Alam Impian

Eaton International School in Alam Impian, Seksyen 35, Shah Alam, is strategically located in the commercial precinct, a short distance from the Central Lake Park and LakePoint Clubhouse. The new school is envisioned as a catalyst to reinvigorate the matured township.  

Planned in 2 stages, Phase 1 is for 600 students, while the future Phase 2 will accommodate another 600 students.  The completed Phase 1 occupies 2.16 acres and consists of a 68,230 sq ft 5-storeys building. Due to the small site, the compact floor layout based on a modular 8 metres x 8 metres grid, is vertically stacked, and linked by circulation corridors, a Central Atrium and open staircases.  The school has 20 classrooms, with supporting facilities such as Administrative Offices, Canteen, Dining Terrace, Library, Sports Hall, Performance Art Centre, Art studios, Laboratories, Infirmary and Suraus.  On the ground floor are 3 combined Kindergarten classrooms, with sliding glass doors opening-out to a sheltered and securely-fenced kindie playground. The kindergarten interiors feature colourful and vibrant colours to excite and engage the pre-school kids’ senses.  

The architecture embodies Eaton’s vision of a dynamic, progressive, and creative educational institution. Externally, white cubic forms are juxtaposed against dynamic angular screens. Along the sides, circulation corridors are painted bright yellow colour as an interplay against the white cubic forms. And in the centre is a spectacular 17.5 metres high folding 3-dimensional metal screen panel in Eaton’s vibrant corporate colours of purple and green, which ties together the façade into a cohesive composition.

Much thought has gone into crafting interesting and flexible in-between spaces to create a conducive learning environment. The centre glass-roofed Atrium forms the ‘Heart’ of the school. A continuous bright yellow ramp encircles the Atrium, rising-up dramatically to physically and visually connect the multiple floors. Natural daylighting filters through the Atrium’s frosted-glass roof and illuminates the interiors.  On the Atrium’s ground, a cascading stepped platform forms an ideal space for students to sit, gather and interact. The open layout encourages natural cross-ventilation by funnelling wind through the terraces and corridors, keeping the school comfortably cool and breezy throughout the day.

Split-levels are introduced to allow the building to gradually ‘climb’ the slope and negotiate the 3 metres level difference from front to back of the site. The split levels create interesting internal spaces, and allows for changing visual vistas as students move throughout the building along the same floor, or when ascending or descending the continuous ramps and staircases.  

On the 2^nd floor, artificially-turfed ‘Green Terraces’ encourage students’ activities to spill-out beyond the classrooms. The ‘Green Terraces’ split-level steps become ideal spaces for students to sit and congregate. The 3^rd floor Performance Art Centre also makes use of the split levels. The upper-level housing the Music Studio, can be utilised as an elevated platform for staging Drama productions and performances, while the lower level becomes the audience seated area. In addition, the large Dance Studio can be flexibly converted into 2 smaller Dance Studios by pulling divider curtains. Overlooking the double-volume Performance Art Centre is the 4^th floor Lending Library.

On the 3^rd floor opposite the Performance Art Centre is the Sports Hall.  Both are housed on the highest level to achieve a large column-free space.  The Sports Hall is enlivened with colourful green and orange vertical strips that accentuates the high double-volume space. Art, creativity, and splashes of vibrant colours is a recurring theme, intentionally and consistently introduced throughout the school, inside the classrooms, laboratories and even inside the common toilets, to create energetic learning spaces that stirs students’ creative imagination.