Building for the future
These sector resources support the teaching of mathematics in the context of architecture. Resources include Architect?s Skills, Bricks and Tiles, Building a Town, Rigid Structures and Tiling Patterns, giving students the opportunity to experience mathematical principles in practice and include topics such as investigating lines of weakness, creating nets of buildings, model making, bracing of structures, tessellation of polygons and symmetry.
Building for the future | Architect's skills
This resource explores aspects of the 3-D thinking involved in developing architectural ideas to plans and models through a series of mathematical activities. These activities develop the process skills involved in understanding and making sense of mathematical information. All of the activities require thinking about geometric information presented in a variety of forms. Building shapes involves the use of the visualisation and mathematical vocabulary of 3-D shapes. Both Building shapes and Dif
Building for the future | Bricks and tiles
This resource begins with the brick, a common building material for walls. It explores lines of weakness in brick wall patterns and then moves on to translation, reflection and rotation using square tile patterns. These activities help to develop the process skills involved in solving problems: recording, systematic experimentation, justifying and proving. Both What makes a wall strong? and Tiling patterns give opportunities for proof by systematic exhaustion. Square tiles requires thinking abou
Building for the future | Building a town
This resource explores aspects of the 3-D thinking involved in developing architectural ideas and making models. Designing nets requires thinking about and interpreting geometric information presented in different forms, moving from one form of representation to another. The activity requires the construction of nets and provides an opportunity to work with Pythagoras? theorem when including roofs in the net design. Extending the activity to include the construction of models with more complicat
Building for the future | Rigid structures
This resource provides the opportunity to look at new or local landmark buildings whilst introducing students to key aspects of shapes and construction of accurate drawings in a motivating problem-solving context. These activities link to the properties of quadrilaterals and types of triangles; measurement of length and angle; construction of triangles and quadrilaterals using geometric tools and congruency.
Building for the future | Tiling patterns
This resource uses the context of patio and floor tiling to investigate how regular polygons fit together. These activities develop the process skills involved in solving problems: recording, systematic experimentation, justifying and proving. Patio patterns involves the use of the mathematical vocabulary of polygons and provides an opportunity for work on the interior angles of polygons. Semi-regular tiling develops work on interior angles. More triangles than squares? involves the students in