Preserving and enhancing the park-like feel of the site was central to the replacement of Carl Sandburg Elementary. Most of the classroom neighborhoods are focused on a grove of 70-year-old Bigleaf maples, creating multiple outdoor learning spaces. Each three- to four-classroom neighborhood is organized around an open shared learning area, small group rooms, and teacher planning areas. Transparency between spaces expands the classroom, allowing small and large group activities to occur in the adjacent shared areas.