Within the framework of the implementation of the federal program for the overhaul of schools, the public and educational project “Dream School” is a platform for students of architectural and design universities of the region to obtain applied competencies. Modern schools need a fresh and modern look at the architecture of the building, which can be achieved with the help of students of architecture and design. For them, practice on real examples and work with experts in the development of this new direction for Russian schools is important. The main objectives of this project are to improve the architectural and artistic expressiveness of school buildings during their major repairs and to provide them with modern developing educational spaces. When developing a design project, special attention should be paid to the satisfaction of students, teachers and parents with the program, taking into account their wishes in the project, in accordance with the instructions of the president. Taking into account the above, in this article we considered an example in which, during the development of a design project, the need for additional project analysis was identified due to the fact that one of the schools did not meet modern requirements for its volumetric planning parameters. The only possible way to bring the building into a standard condition is to increase the area of ​​the building. This can be solved in two ways: increasing the number of floors or adding an additional block. During the discussion of the issue and analysis of the experience of solving such problems, we came to the conclusion that it is necessary to develop a project for the reconstruction of this school with the addition of a separate block, into which the premises of the canteen and assembly hall are transferred.