Why look back to imagine the future? Given the almost universal consensus that higher level technology-enhanced learning should lead in the design of school buildings, what place is there for low-level (non-digital) technologies in education? What can we learn from revisiting schools that were at one time seen to be internationally pioneering in the education of young children? What has changed, been lost or endured over time and how do these changes reflect an altered view of the school pupil and their relation to the material world? What differences can be brought about by the new emphasis on the views of children and their participation in the design of education and educational environments? This paper brings together some evidence of the views of school pupils with past and present ideas and practices concerning the design of learning environments. It argues that there are consistencies over time in certain design features valued by pioneering architects and educators that are also found to be appreciated by schoolchildren. Finally, it explores the meaning of designing schools for the future applying the concept of 'future building' learning spaces within a framework that links past experiments in education with future scenarios.