Rooted in community and grounded in nature. The Henderson Preschool, which is buried in the middle of a suburban, master planned community, looks to the neighboring wetlands for design concept queues and as an anchor for the children to understand the uniqueness of their locality. Design drivers from the client included providing a safe space for pre-school children to learn and grow through exploration and direct connections to the environment, and providing high-quality educational spaces. Themes of earth, water, sky, and plants represented by the nearby Las Vegas Wash wetlands are subtly woven through the design by assigning each classroom pair a representative color. Individual pickets call to mind the verticality of the wetlands grasses while the exposed aggregate sidewalk meanders through the site connecting classrooms, play spaces and activity spaces organizing the flow of the site. The building is sited to engage the surrounding single and multi-family homes, providing walking paths that minimize pedestrian and automobile conflict, providing connections to the neighboring community park, and make ease of pick-up and drop-off simpler for parents with multiple children of varying ages. The building itself serves as a natural physical and visual barrier between public spaces and protected spaces, shielding the play yard from the park and from neighboring residents. Designed for flexibility and growth, the preschool utilizes repeatable modules paired and connected by support spaces including an Observation Room that serves as a space for parents to discretely watch their children engage other children and their instructors. Each classroom is oriented to maximize daylighting and views to the exterior while minimizing views into the classroom from the public side. The classroom modules are organized around a central play yard which uses natural materials to encourage tactile exploration, creativity and imaginative play. The buffer between the play spaces and learning spaces are the Outdoor Classrooms which serve as an extension of the classroom. The simple, south-facing mono-slope roof is the organizing element connecting the classrooms, shading the outdoor learning spaces, and providing future opportunities for renewable energy installations. Simple, local materials are deployed in a variety of textures, sizes and colors to create visually stimulating spaces, challenging the children to recognize organization and patterns in their environment.