Think about the classrooms of your childhood. Most likely every
one was a big square, harshly lit by cheap fluorescent lights.
And whether you were learning the multiplication tables or
studying the solar system, chances are every classroom in your
school was virtually identical. For years, schools were
typically designed in the “factory model:” square classrooms
housed in classical, symmetrical buildings. But this prevailing
tradition wasn’t good enough for Larry Perkins, who founded
Perkins+Will with his partner Phillip Will in 1935 in Chicago.
Shortly after they formed the firm, they were hired to design an
elementary school in Winnetka, IL. Mr. Perkins began his
research with the classroom – in person. He sat in the small
desks next to the students, watched them closely and plotted
their actions during the day. He learned how schools really
worked. As a result, he, along with architects Eliel and Eero
Saarinen designed the first modern elementary school of its
kind, Crow Island School. Rather than square-