This article invites teachers to let their students' imaginations soar as they become part of a team that will design a whole new kind of living technological museum, a facility that celebrates the world of infrastructure. In this activity, a new two-story building will be built, occupying a vacant corner parcel of land, approximately 150…

This article discusses the process of a study designed to develop university students' sketching skills in schools of architecture. Acknowledging the relationship between cognition and writing, it aims to investigate the role of writing in learning sketching among architecture students and to examine how students regulate their thoughts by writing…

Sustainable design is a philosophy adopted by people concerned with the health of society and the natural environment. The practice of sustainable design works toward the improvement of the quality of the built environment, while reducing or eradicating the negative impact on the natural environment (McLennan 2004). It is a philosophical approach…

In 2004, "Learning Reconsidered" urged educators to think more holistically about student learning and development. "Learning Initiatives in the Residential Setting" provides a framework for putting this call into action at large universities and small colleges alike. Chapters trace the history of learning in residence halls, discuss academic and…

Presents an investigation that engages students in constructing models of houses to examine the dynamics of energy flow patterns. Uses the learning cycle procedure that allows students to experience the processes of science and to use higher level thinking skills. (JRH)

This document is a teacher's guide to the historic buildings of Eugene, Oregon. Eighteen buildings in the Skinner's Butte Historical District are highlighted, including the U.S. Post Office, the Eagles Building, the Lane Hotel, the Oregon Electric Depot, the Southern Pacific Railroad Depot, and several houses. For each structure there is a brief…

This qualitative study explored college teaching in an "apprenticeship" setting, specifically the architectural design studio. The study examined studio teachers' efforts to design effective project assignments and to help students move successfully through those assignments. Two design teachers were interviewed and observed as their students…

Ieoh Ming (I. M.) Pei, born in Canton, China, came to the United States in 1935 to study architecture, first at the University of Pennsylvania, then at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and at Harvard University's Graduate School of Design. Today, Pei's reputation and architectural contributions are renowned worldwide. He has designed…

Through aesthetics, styles, and organization of space, campus architecture has often been complicit in reproducing dominant ideologies and social relations of society, undermining diversity and its possibilities. Architectural scholars, as teachers of architecture, should move theory and practice into new, more critical social terrain. (MSE)

The activities presented in this book encompass a variety of perceptual, social, and technological issues as they relate to the built environment. They are organized to present a coherent, cumulative series. Generalizations become specific as vocabulary is developed and planned techniques explained. Curriculum guide charts indicate subject areas…

This lesson plan introduces seventh-ninth graders to Frank Lloyd Wright and shows how nature influenced and inspired the design of his home and studio. Students will: identify natural design elements from the house, apply their awareness of form to their own natural and built environment, and create designs based on natural forms they find…

Discusses the unique perspective that the built environment brings to the study of history. Presents questions that can be used to analyze a building to examine identification, form, function, and impact. Suggests that studying a building is like conducting a micro study of the development of a society. (DK)

The United States Capitol building fashions an historical awe that includes images of the founding fathers, legislative branch, executive branch, and the American people. Even though it was built for elected officials to take care of governmental business, it serves to represent the democratic republic from which the United States was created.…

This lesson plan introduces high school students to pueblo architecture. Students will learn about pueblo architecture and its cultural tradition; discuss architectural characteristics and aesthetics in San Geronimo de Taos; examine the pueblo as a living environment; explore adobe pueblo structure in clay; and study Hopi, Zuni, and Pueblo…

In this unit of the Seeing and Thinking Mathematically series, students use geometry to analyze buildings from around the world, design and build their own house models, create plans for their designs, and build from each other's plans. Students start out the unit building with cubes and later move to other geometric shapes. As they learn to…