Assessment of the Écoletopie experience at Saint-Charles School

The New National Museum of Monaco and the Directorate of National Education, Youth and Sports of the Principality of Monaco, with the support of the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation, invited the smarin studio to experiment with a new form of pedagogy through a project entitled “Écoletopie.”

Designed by the smarin studio in 2022 for the exhibition “The Art of Learning, a School of Creators” at the Centre Pompidou Metz, the device was deployed for the first time within a school, in Monaco. Thus, “Écoletopie” took place in a classroom at Saint-Charles School from September to the end of February.

During this period, CM1 students and their teacher operated in a total environment, with main objectives such as mobilizing attention, collective intelligence, exercising sensitivity, and body awareness. The device, with each piece made from pure and untreated materials carefully chosen for their natural qualities, was accompanied by a series of conversations and practical workshops conducted by smarin.

During these sessions, children became aware of the importance of their posture and mobility in class, the role of the collective in many activities, and the significance of time spent on sensitive practices in knowledge acquisition. Moreover, as the smarin studio is particularly committed to researching the invention of objects that limit their impact on the human body and the ecosystem, children were regularly educated about the ecological footprint of materials in architecture and design.

This experience was widely praised by students and the teaching team at Saint-Charles School. The practice of sensitive exploration activities allowed children to develop their concentration skills and create meaning in acquiring expected competencies.

The entire setup facilitated the implementation of cooperative practices in the organization of the class group (work plans, activities proposed in the form of workshops, tutoring). The proposed total environment, aiding in “doing collectively,” had a positive influence on all learning in various disciplinary fields.