'…all Arts were begot by Chance and Observation, and nursed by Use and Experience, and improved and perfected by Reason and Study.'
Leone Battista Alberti
How can architectural mathematical concepts be integrated into everyday life applications? What are the basic principles and relationships between mathematics and architectural design? What are the direct and indirect impacts of architectural form and design in our lives? And more importantly, how can these concepts be presented to elementary school students in a meaningful way? These are some of the central questions that this curricular unit begins to answer and attempts to clarify. The inherent concepts will be used to implement this unit of study so that elementary school students can understand the importance they have in our lives.
In order to accomplish this, students will participate in a series of activities focused on direct observation and enquiry based learning allowing them to:
-
· Compare and contrast different types of structures (at least two neighborhood structures)
-
· Differentiate between two-dimensional planes and three-dimensional objects
-
· Study the differences and relationships between design, materials, structures, interiors and exteriors
-
· Observe how materials can affect the form and function of a structure
-
· Design and create a structure and compare this to other local structures
-
· Create a picture dictionary with terms related to the design and building of a structure
-
· Participate in a neighborhood trivia hunt with buildings around the Fair Haven neighborhood
-
· Make observations of the design elements and components of the interior and the exterior of a building
-
· Make visual, written and oral presentations based on observations from a neighborhood building hunt
-
· Recreate through drawings and models story settings having to do with location or structures in stories
-
· Describe and create a matrix with the spaces in a building, the functions, and who uses them