Yokohama International School is a warm and caring international community where families from all backgrounds feel welcome and students have abundant opportunities to explore, develop and challenge themselves. A medium-sized IB Continuum School, it offers all three main programs of the International Baccalaureate, providing an inquiry-centered, transdisciplinary and skills-focused learning continuum from early years through high school. Together, students, staff and parents strive to fulfill our simple yet dynamic mission: Live Learn Lead.
Our new campus, designed by Kengo Kuma & Associates specifically for our learning programs and teaching philosophy, is adjacent to a shopping complex and close to other commercial and residential areas of the Honmoku neighborhood in Yokohama. Learning in our school occurs everywhere and in a variety of settings, not only in classrooms; our innovative campus ensures the environment we create supports this approach. Built for our learning community, every space is designed to be a learning space, and the wood panelling theme and natural light features retain and enhance the warm sense of community for which our school is known.
A showcase for international education in Yokohama, our 14,685m2 site is comprised of the 4-story North Building that houses the library, cafeteria, auditorium and most of the classroom areas and administrative offices, and the 3-story South Building that houses the Early Learning Center and physical education facilities, including a double gymnasium and indoor swimming pool. A full-size athletic field complements the indoor athletic facilities. Consistent with our school's emphasis on the importance of community, the entire campus is designed for wheelchair accessibility, diversity, equity and inclusion. Multiple hub spaces inside and outside for group interaction are an essential element of the campus that create a sense of community when students of varying ages, staff, parents and alumni gather together and feel a connection to the physical space.
To pay homage to our host country and the culture that we live within, styling cues reflect Japanese modern and traditional architecture and aesthetics, particularly those that reflect harmony between man-made environments and the natural world, and utilize materials that are both aesthetically pleasing and ecologically sound.