Architectural Elements Give a Place Its Own Unique Character

Teacher: Mary Sarni
Architects: Kristin Mullaney & Susan Reel

Architectural Elements Give a Place Its Own Unique Character

Through this project, the teacher wanted to help students learn how to solve problems by dealing with a client's wishes in the design of a building; to examine America's architectural styles as an expression of ethnic diversity, geography, and natural resources; and to look at how materials and structural properties affect architectural form.

Objective:What do architects do? With whom do they work? What do they think about?

Activity:

• Show slides of an architect's office, a building under construction, and some examples of unusual buildings. Explain whom architects work with and show some architect's tools.
• Students sit in a circle and one at a time are blindfolded. The blindfolded student is given a material used in a building -- stone, brick, insulation, roofing materials, etc. -- and has to guess what it is and what it is used for.

Materials:

• slides and architectural tools, including templates, scales, t-square, triangles, hard hat
• sample building materials
• scarf for blindfold



Homework: Students are to think about what their dream house would be.

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Be an Archtitect

Objective:Students play the role of an architect and begin to think about what they need to design their dream house.

Activity:

• Bring in examples of architectural drawings and spread them out on the floor. Talk about the different drawings and what each one shows.
• Students write a description of their dream house and exchange descriptions with another student who acts as the architect. Students then draw their classmate's house from the written description, adding embellishments.
• Students have 20 minutes to write the description and have no restrictions on the type of drawing to create. They choose the drawing that they think will best communicate their design.

Materials:

• architectural drawings



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Living in another Climate

Objective:Students explore the influences of climate and materials on Native American and Pioneer architecture, discussing cold climates, hot and wet climates, and hot and dry climates.

Activity:

• Architect prepares a slide lecture showing indigenous architecture that responds to climate and early European-American buildings that similarly respond to climate.
• Divide the class into groups and assign each a different climate -- hot and dry, hot and wet, or cold. Tell students that their client now has to live in this different climate and that they have to adapt the specifics of the dream house to respond to the demands of the climate.
• Bring in books of indigenous architecture and different climates for students to refer to.

Student House Descriptions and Designs:
• Design 1
• Design 2
• Design 3

Materials:
• slides & books to show sample architecture types



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Building Elements and Architectural Style

Objective:Students learn how different building elements make buildings look different and affect architectural style.

Activity:

• Students work in groups of three to four drawing an elevation of a building (any type of building except a house) showing the building elements and building form. One group does a hospital, one a museum of gargoyles, and one a government building that is later turned into a restaurant and inn.
• Show slides illustrating windows, doors, roofs, stairs, and other building elements with two slide projectors for comparing elements. Students describe how the element shown in each slide makes the building feel and what kind of building the element might be part of.
• Give students handouts of building elements. The students point out elements that they can find in their own houses and neighborhoods.

Materials:

• slides of building elements/ details
• large sheet of paper for building elevations



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Neighborhood Walking Tour

Objective:Students find building elements in their neighborhood by doing a scavenger hunt.

Activity:

• Spend the class period outside on a walking tour.
• Walking Tour Worksheet

Materials:

• Walking Tour Worksheet

Comments:
An unplanned highlight occurred while we were in front of a house with beautiful details. Students were discussing what they saw when the owner came out and began telling the class the history of the house. For the 1876 World's Fair in Fairmount Park, Philadelphia, each state built a house to display the skills of their residents and this particular house had been constructed by carpenters from Missouri. After the fair, a doctor purchased the house for his dentist brother and had it moved to the present site. Many of the other houses on that street were built of materials from the dismantled buildings at the fair.

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Field Trip to Wharton Esherick's Studio, Paoli, PA

Activity:

• Wharton Eshrick Studio
• Field Trip Worksheet



Comments:
The kids were fascinated and asked so many questions that they got ahead of the guide. Their excitement was obvious.

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What's Inside (also Week #8)

Objective:Students use clues of windows and doors from the elevation to draw a section showing the inside of the building.

Activity:

• The students continue working on their building elevations and then draw a section of the building to show the interior. The two drawings are pinned next to each other to show the inside and outside together, making sure that where a window is on the outside, a window is also on the inside. This shows the direct impact of window and door locations.

Materials:

• craft paper for elevations and sections

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Students' Article:

The Upper Elementary Times
EXTRA! EXTRA!
Upper Elementary Learns About Architecture


By Alex Feldman and John Felicetti

Over the last weeks the Upper Elementary has been learning the fundamentals of architecture. Every week, two architects from the Foundation for Architecture come to our classroom and teach us about buildings and how they are designed and built.

Our architects, Kristin and Susan, have been participating in the Foundation for Architecture program for a few years. They have already taught us about structure and everyone who has a major role in constructing buildings.

We each have designed a house including floor plans and elevations for someone else in the class. Our clients gave us specifications (like no bathroom for their brother or a jungle in their backyard!) and styles that they wanted their house to be. Then we set off on an adventure in architecture. The result: some loved them and others didn't turn out the way they wanted. "My architect won't even let me see my house!" complains Alex. Others rave, "My house turned out great!"

When we asked some students and teachers how they feel about the program the response was unanimous! Here are some of the things they said, "Architecture is exciting and educational all at the same time!" says Danielle. Mrs. Leininger raves, "I love to see the imagination of the architects and the clients."

Overall, Architecture is a great program in the eyes of both teachers and students.

Conference Room

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