Sandpiper: May - July 2020

SANDP I PER | JULY 2020 5 AN innovative concept from local architects Y2 Architecture has been piloted at St Joseph’s Primary School in Quarry Hill. Only six schools in the state, including Marist College Bendigo, were slected to test the ‘Unboxy’ prototype which enables students to create architectural spaces within their classrooms that are safe, productive and inviting! A Director from Y2 Architecture, Matt Dwyer said the COVID-19 health crisis highlighted the need to rethink the way we work, engage, learn and teach within the 21st century. “Unboxy is the first step in creating resilient, adaptive, inclusive classrooms of the future. It offers support of students’ social and emotional needs, whilst maintaining the still-unfolding practical measures required, such as social distancing,” he said. “Unboxy is a kit of parts; it is made up of large cardboard shapes and connectors that enables students to create the geometric forms of their choosing. They are encouraged to experiment, imagine, and push the basic shapes of Unboxy to its limits,” he said. In essence, Unboxy is cardboard architecture, providing a low cost, high impact, textural medium that inspires students and educators to experiment with shapes, forms and processes that can be integrated into day-to-day learning. It is designed to complement, not disrupt, the daily flow of a classroom – fitting around furniture, embracing movement paths, and creating unique pockets and learning and wellbeing opportunity. Principal of St Joseph’s Primary School, Ms Joan Coldwell said they were thrilled to take part in the Beta test pilot. “It’s a wonderful initiative that has the potential to provide great benefit to teachers and students in these unique times,” she said. Y2 Architecture has partnered with designers, psychologists and educational experts from Australia, Uruguay and the United States of America to develop the ‘Unboxy’ concept. The aim was to create a hands-on, in-classroom project that gives students some control over how they restore a sense of normality within the structured community of a classroom. Students get ‘unboxy’ By Jenni Kennedy, Catholic Education Sandhurst Lexie Austen, Matt Dwyer (Director of Y2 Architecture) and Dylan Sim. Xavier Marwood gets hands-on with unboxy. Photo: CES.