Arabian Pearl Gulf (APG), a prestigious educational institution rooted in Bahrain’s cultural legacy since its founding in 1996, stands as a beacon of accessible and affordable excellence. While successfully branching out globally, APG prides itself on delivering exceptional education, firmly anchored in international accreditations. As a part of this legacy, APG Kindergarten plays a vital role in shaping young minds. In response to the evolving educational landscape, APG has undergone a successful rebranding, aligning its identity with aspirations. However, the kindergarten section requires focused attention. The goal is to create a distinct wayfinding system that not only resonates with APG’s cultural heritage but also warmly engages its young audience. This project aims to enhance the overall kindergarten environment, making it more attractive, engaging, and enjoyable for the children. At Inovaline, our mission is to seamlessly integrate these objectives, weaving together cultural richness, educational excellence, and a vibrant, engaging environment that becomes synonymous with the unique identity of APG Kindergarten.

The Discovery stage for APG Kindergarten delved into the world of childhood attraction and psychology. We closely observed children in kindergarten settings, studied academic insights into creating engaging environments, and visited places like the Ithra Kids Museum in Saudi Arabia for inspiration. Our exploration included on-site visits at kindergartens, providing valuable insights. This phase enriched our understanding of what makes an environment appealing for children. Our digital exploration involved extensive internet research to glean global perspectives on best practices and innovative solutions. This holistic approach laid the foundation for APG Kindergarten’s journey to create a captivating and impactful educational environment.

The primary audience was students, followed by parents and the school community. As stakeholders to the legacy driving APG, the brand identity and colors informing the wayfinding had to be reassuringly familiar – which led to the usage of the pearl motif predominantly. Integrating the new brand visuals onto the existing bland walls and playroom of the kindergarten immediately transformed the drab colors into something simultaneously warm and exciting. Designing each major color such as blue for Ground Level & red for First Level further easily helped visitors as well as the kids & adults to easily identify where they are as different levels were housing differing age groups in KG. Regular terms such as library, toilets and playroom were reimagined with new terms such as Pearl Page Palace, Pearl Washrooms & Pearl Play Park which further accentuated and distinctively highlighted the brand identity everywhere. The Pearl Mascot was peppered throughout the location as signs and wall decals in poses appropriate to the surroundings which playfully gave cues that was needed in that particular location. Each classes were named as different variants of pearls or given terms related to the old names of Bahrain. Such a strategy was not just innovative it also drew upon the legacy of the Bahraini people and heritage which Arabian Pearl Gulf as an institution took pride in and drew their inspiration from.

Our efforts to pencil out an identity, shaped by kid behavioral concepts, led us to formulate three key concepts:-

a) Facility Naming Using the school name “Arabian Pearl” as a springboard, we crafted unique class names for KG-1 inspired by well-known pearls (Murjan, Lulu, Durra, Dana, Jaiwan etc.). For K-2, we drew upon legacy markers from the historical city that was a part of the school’s legacy, such as Awal Pioneers, Dilmun Dreamers, Aradous Heroes etc. – which were the old names in Ancient Bahrain.

b) Mascot Design We designed the “Lulu” mascot, which was playful, welcoming and had a curious character and channeled the wayfinding system using the Mascot’s mannerisms enhancing the child-friendly experience.

c) Support Elements We also created eye-friendly support elements that was repeatable in a memorable manner, using unique visuals to elevate the creative experience.