October 26, 2010

By: Nancy K. from San Diego, CA
Comments: 29

Posted By: Nancy Katz
On: 2/28/2007 7:31:02 AM

I have spent the past 2 weeks in Paris visiting my 2 children who are both studying here. It has been great taking in all the details of design in a new place. I could write many ideas now for conversation threads which could develop into future lessons, and have been taking notes and sketches along the way. One thought is just sharing with a partner from around the world- or on the other side of the same city- ideas, strategies and possibilities for how we solve problems- how things are made and used. This might sound vague, but just looking in shop windows, grocery stores etc. we see the differences everywhere from packaging to scale of things to what is important to people as a group and as individuals.

Posted By: Chrisovalantis Gailas
On: 2/28/2007 6:28:43 PM

Hey Nancy, I hope you had a relaxing time in Paris! At my school, we as a faculty are thinking about having the students build models of various structures/buildings. However, a debate we are having is, should students concentrate their models to buildings in New York, since they are easilly accessbile and can be visted instead of the Eifel Tower lets say? Do you have an opinion on this matter? Thanks!

Posted By: Barbara Nikoomanesh
On: 3/1/2007 3:34:55 PM

I think it is important for students to gain an appreciation of a variety of cultures. Studying the architecture from other parts of the world, would help students understand the people and culture, as well as the demographics. This exploration would also help students see the need for various materials and building styles, according to the demographics and culture of the people.

Posted By: Nancy Katz
On: 3/4/2007 8:50:12 AM

In response to whether students should concentrate on studying architecture that is close at hand versus that far away that they would not be able to visit and experience first hand. Nothing can beat actually going to a site and seeing and touching with one's own eyes and hands what is before you. It is especilly wonderful discovering those wonders , large and very small in our everyday midst. I would say if you can combine the local with the far flung that would be the best. Of course you might not be able to arrange a field trip to Paris but local resources might help shed light on structure, material, engineering technique, history and other issues. We learn so much about our own world when we step outside into another. So if you were studying towers and the Eiffel tower was part of the study, you could maybe find a structure close at hand that used a similar construction technique. You could visit that place and kids could touch the material. Working in the fall with the architecture project centering on a local round barn and other polygonal structures, I was delighted flying into Paris and seeing the structure- layout of the airport a series of circular terminals around a main center round structure. I was thrilled to see the Place de la Victorie in Paris where the buildings around the center space made a lovely circle( there is something wonderful about buildings that curve!) with a great monument(horse and rider_ Louis XV I think) in the center. There were other rounded places- L'Orangerie with Monet's huge paintings, a rounded shaped bed in the Museum of Decorative arts and tiny smart cars( not really round), but small enough to park sideways on streets as a motorcycle would. If you are able to connect with students in that other place that would be wonderful as well. The students, say from Paris, could be informants for your students on their local structure and the information could be shared. Young people in other parts of the world have such a different connection to art, architecture and design. It is important for our students to embrace our own art, design and architecture from the inside out and the outside in. I would have liked very much to visit and school when I was there but students have a 2 week vacation the second half of Feb.

Posted By: Barbara Nikoomanesh
On: 3/6/2007 3:57:38 PM

Nancy, What a neat idea to share observations and descriptions about architecture, between students across the globe. I would like to somehow initiate that with students in another country. They could give descriptions of structures, textures, materials, and details. They could also email digital images with the technical writing. Some sort of design project could then be created, using the information of structures from another country. This would help students research and learn more about the architecture in their city, as well as learning about the architecture in another country.

Posted By: Monique Fineman
On: 3/15/2007 6:47:45 PM

On a smaller scale, a teacher at my school does a unit on the book "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn" which is set in the area our school is located. She does a neighborhood walk and there is an emphasis on architechture. I am hopping on board this year so we can extend the activity. Some of the things you mentioned will help me get started planning with her. Thanks!

Posted By: Donna Sharpe
On: 4/1/2007 7:29:22 PM

Nancy, What an interesting topic! I would love to see packaging brought into the classroom for a cross-cultural/design lesson. I did something like that last year with my "culture kit" after a trip to the middle-east. One of the more interesting items to students and adults alike was the Fullah doll - the Saudi Arabian equivalent of our Barbie doll. It was packaged exactly like a Barbie - hot pink box and all.

Posted By: Leslie Lami-Reed
On: 4/8/2007 6:11:40 PM

I have to say that it has been rewarding for me to show students the strong design elements in their own back yard...especially for the young student. When introducing a mural project, I was surprised to discover that the largest indoor mural in the world is in our town, Kalamazoo, Michigan at the local Air Zoo!!! https://www.airzoo.com/attractions/murals/ I also introduced the students to our excellent local muralist, Conrad Kauffman who has painted murals in our schools and neighborhoods. https://www.fencerows.com/murals/index.htm The students were so excited to learn about the riches in their own community and to discover the value that our citizens place on art. It makes them feel proud and lets them see that anything is possible and they can be a part of it!. Leslie

Posted By: Nancy Katz
On: 4/8/2007 8:25:03 PM

Leslie, all the mural work sounds great! Yes, finding all the rich connections in your own backyard is often the most rewarding and does open up students eyes to the world they have close at hand.best of luck with your murals, Nancy

Posted By: sudha singh
On: 6/14/2007 9:18:33 PM

Having a love of travel with a photographers eye, I cannot help but notice that each city, neighborhood has its own characteristic. Moving from one part of the city to the other offers an insight into what goes into the designing of each particular area. We take so many things for granted and pass them on a daily basis without ever deciphering the new things, old things that were there, and are no longer there etc. I have noticed a surge of construction in the West Philadelphia area since the election of the new mayor. This is something that has not occurred in a while, seeing this change is an omen for growth and better days. We have to let our learners notice new things around their immediate surroundings and also be aware of changes while travelling and documentint their responses. This is a nice way of keeping historical records of places that are changing.

Posted By: John Galt
On: 6/20/2007 2:47:22 PM

These posts talk a lot to the idea that designers are influenced by the environment and culture around them. By traveling into different environments and cultures we are exposed to more variations in design elements. This exposure can give us a greater set of ideas to use when we design. If only travel could be a component in all children's education! We can also collect these objects and photographs on our travels to help expose our students to them. However, it is always better to experience it yourself.

Posted By: Catherine Perry
On: 6/21/2007 11:00:52 AM

Nancy, have you seen the "Design for the Other 90%" show? It deals exactly with what you're saying, about how package design, etc. is created. There's a great photographer who went into stores all over the world and took pictures from various angles: the outside looking into the windows, the front counter, from the back, etc. and juxtaposed the images from far ranging locations. The similarities were striking. A corner bodega in the South Bronx looks remarkably like a candy store in urban Yemen. And it seems as if every culture has their own Canal Street! Whenever I'm in Morocco, which is often, I take pictures of construction in progress. That's something that i find myself and my students become fascinated with: not only the comparisons between the 'final product', but the comparisons between different styles of building structures. Everything from the materials to the tools and machines to the actual process is fascinating to observe!

Posted By: kathy murphy
On: 6/21/2007 3:09:06 PM

On the inside of my art room door I have photos of myself in front of beautiful architecture in Venice, Rome and Florence mounted on a board with handwritten descriptions of the locations. The student love to look at these while they are waiting for others to line up and as they go out the door. They inspire many of the children to talk about traveling to see those "cool " places.

Posted By: Susan Miller
On: 6/21/2007 7:52:41 PM

I have always loved the market places in different parts of the world. The idea of how things are displayed is a great design activity to get kids thinking about. One of my favorite displays was in Egypt, where the different spices were displayed in the form of pyramids. I have a picture of it with the vendor proudly displaying his work! The colors are amazing. But back to the question asked earlier about whether or not to use buildings that are far away. My feeling is that in introducing architectural language, and especially depending on the age, it is great to do neighborhood walks and sketch, looking at the way in which even similar building types use details differently. There is the broad gesture of a building, but also, the small details that often distinguish one from another, even in a similar genre, so people who design buildings think of both. In our school, we do a project with first graders where they do go out into the neighborhood, sketching buildings, and then they make buildings out of paper mache. It sounds like some of you are working with older kids, so the idea of the big "blockbuster" buildings would certainly get them excited.

Posted By: Dorothy Ahoklui
On: 6/22/2007 12:33:47 AM

I think that another interesting activity would be to see how the design process is used in parts of the world. For example, looking at a cup and its function which is to hold things and seeing the design of other items which serve the same purpose around the world. Evaluations of the designs and their materials can also done as part of the activity.

Posted By: Alberto Romero
On: 7/19/2007 2:00:48 PM

Philadelphia is a wonderful city to study architecture design. There are buildings that date back to the 1700's and new construction springing up every day. Being a language teacher, I incorporate descriptive essay writing and compare and contrast assignments of buildings and neighborhoods around our city.

Posted By: Judith Stroman
On: 4/11/2008 6:28:51 PM

Dorothy, I really like your idea about the cup. This versatile activity could be used as a social studies kick-off to introducing elementary students to different cultures around the world. I have to share your idea with other teacher at my school!