2. STRUCTURES BOOK LIST
Amazing Buildings (DK Level 2 reader) by Kate Hayden
Architecture Animals Michael J. Crosbie and Steve Rosenthal
Architecture Shapes Michael J. Crosbie and Steve Rosenthal
Beavers: Dam Builders (Animal Architects) by Lynn George
Building Big by David Macauley
Building on Nature: The Life of Antoni Gaudí by Rachel Victoria Rodriguez , Julie Paschkis
(Illustrator)
Built by Animals: The Natural History of Animal Architecture by Mike Hansell
Design for Fun: Playgrounds By Marta Rojals Del Alamo
Frank Gehry in Pop-Up Jinny Johnson and Roland Lewis
Henry David's House by Steven Schnur (Editor) , Steven Schnur , Henry David Thoreau , Steven
Schnur (Editor) , Peter M. Fiore (Illustrator)
Henry Builds a Cabin (e-book) by D.B. Johnson , D. B. Johnson (Illustrator)
Iggy Peck, Architect Andrea Beaty with Illustrations by David Roberts
Palazzo Inverso by D. B. Johnson
Roberto, The Insect Architect by Nina Laden
Structures, Materials, & Art Activities (Arty Facts) [Paperback] Barbara Taylor
The Ant's Nest: A Huge, Underground City (Spectacular Animal Towns) Miriam Aronin
The Magic School Bus Gets Ants In Its Pants: A Book About Ants by Joanna Cole, John Speirs and
Bruce Degan
The Itaipu Dam: World's Biggest Dam (Record-Breaking Structures) by Mark Thomas
3. Bloom's Taxonomy Verbs
The ideas presented in the following matrices are “scaffolded” from simple
to complex. You will see the appropriate learning objective recorded in
green text below each lesson. The learner will enter the study exploring the
familiar and known concepts about structures, and advance slowly to the
higher levels of thinking, where the activities related to insight, imagination
and invention reside. It is helpful to keep this list handy as you formulate ad-
ditional essential questions, think about lessons for exploration of these
queries, and create learning activities.
Knowledge Count, Define, Describe, Draw, Find, Identify, Label, List,
Match, Name, Quote, Recall, Recite, Sequence, Tell
Comprehension Conclude, Demonstrate, Discuss, Explain, General-
ize, Identify, Illustrate, Interpret, Paraphrase, Predict, Report, Restate, Re-
view, Summarize, Tell
Application Apply, Change, Choose, Compute, Dramatize, Interview,
Prepare, Produce, Role-play, Select, Show, Transfer, Use
Analysis Analyze, Characterize, Classify, Compare, Contrast, Debate,
Deduce, Diagram, Differentiate, Discriminate, Distinguish, Examine, Outline,
Relate, Research, Separate
Evaluation Appraise, Argue, Assess, Choose, Conclude, Critic, De-
cide, Evaluate, Judge, Justify, Predict, Prioritize, Prove, Rank, Rate, Select
Synthesis Compose, Construct, Create, Design, Develop, Integrate,
Invent, Make, Organize, Perform, Plan, Produce, Propose, Rewrite
4. Matrices: Structures
On the following frames you will find a complete set of
Understanding by Design (UbD) matrices, based upon
the ideas of Jay McTighe and Grant Wiggins (2004), and
organized around essential questions.
Essential questions are designed to engage students’
personal perspectives, invite explanation, motivate ap-
plication and inspire reflection on the topic of structures.
Of course, you may add and expand upon the basic
ideas presented here to differentiate based upon readi-
ness, learning profile and personal preferences of your
learners.
5. 1. A structure is an object that holds itself
together.
Knowledge: define, describe, recall
What is a structure?
What were the first structures?
Example: What are same of the structures we
can find in nature?
Crystal structures
Egg
Invertebrate shells
Wasps and bees hives
Spider web
Bird’s nests
Beaver dams
Termite tower
Groundhog tunnel
Chart lesson
Brainstorm naturally occurring and animal
structures known to the class and print them
on chart paper.
Example:
3 D Construction exercise:
Build structures with manipulative sets
Show samples
Animal shelter task sheet 1
2. Human structures are built for protec-
tion from animals and the environment
Structures are built to house the family.
Read: Children All Over the World
Comprehension: conclude, discuss, ex-
plain , generalize
Why do we need structures?
What some of the types of structures built by
humans?
Example:
Human structures:
Shelters
Houses
Buildings
Skyscrapers
Tunnels
Bridges
Dams
Towers
Dome
Chart lesson
Brainstorm all structures built by humans
known to the class. Print them on chart pa-
per.
Example:
Show models
3 D Construction exercise: Build struc-
tures with unit blocks.
Human structures task sheet 2
STRUCTURES
Knowledge: There are many types of structures and they serve various purposes
1
Human structures
Office building
Anasazi cliff
homes
Guggenheim
Geodesic
Bridge
Aswan dam
Dome
Lincoln
Tunnel
Skyscraper
Animal structures
Bee hive
Wasp nest
Conch shell
Crystal
Spider web
Beaver dam
Egg
Groundhog tunnel
Termite tower
Lessons Essential questions Project/evidence
6. 3. We can compare the structures built by
humans to those built by animals and insects.
Structures are used for many purposes.
Analysis: analyze, compare, differentiate,
What are the similarities between natural and
human structures
Why are these structures built?
What do we learn from them?
What are the uses for these structures?
Chart lesson
Match the human structure with the animal
structure on the chart.
Example:
Picture/picture matching sheet
4. When we speak of structure we are speak-
ing of the parts or elements of a built object.
Structures are built of many types of materi-
als.
Comprehension: conclude, demonstrate,
generalize
What materials are used for structures that
humans build?
Name some of the materials that are used in
building structures you have learned about so
far.
Example:
1. Wood
2. Mud
3. Concrete
4. Steel
5. Stone
6. Plaster
7. Glass
8. Ice
Hands-on exploration:
Show samples of building materials and
have the children manipulate them. Ask
them to describe some of the properties of
each one
Discuss: What do these materials have in
common? What are the differences in these
materials? Which you think is the strongest?
Chart lesson
Create a materials chart. Ask the children to
place the material sample in its place on the
chart (labeled). Ask them to find a picture of
the structure that may have been built from
the material and place the picture next to the
sample.
Animal structures Human structures
Bee hive Office building
Mud wasp
nest
Anasazi
dwellings
Conch shell Guggenheim
Spider web Bridge
Beaver dam Aswan dam
Egg Dome
Groundhog
tunnel
Lincoln
Tunnel
Termite
tower
Skyscraper
2
Lessons Essential questions Project/evidence
7. 5. People all over the world have built
structures that are important to them. .
Knowledge: name, list, locate, recall, tell
What are some famous structures around the
world?
List some famous structures you have seen or
read about in books.
Example:
1. Empire state building
2. Cinderella’s castle
3. Twin arches St. Louis
4. Eiffel tower
5. Pyramids at Giza
6. Temple of Dendur
7. Sydney Opera House
8 . Ice Station Zero
9. Great Wall of China
Discussion
Where in the world do we find these famous
structures?
Chart lesson
Have the children share knowledge of struc-
tures around the world. Create a display that
shows a sample of each of the world’s grat
structures.
Example:
6. Structures show the needs and wants of
the culture that built them.
Knowledge: identify, name, list, locate
What are the uses of these structures? Print the names of the structures on chart
paper.
Ask the children to listen to the name of the
structure and look at the design of the structure.
Print their ideas for the uses of each on chart
paper.
Task sheet: Uses of structures task sheet
7.People who design and build structures
think about the shapes and forms they
want to use.
Comprehension: conclude, demonstrate,
explain, generalize, interpret
What are some of the forms you can find in
these pictures of famous structures?
How do these sets of shapes and forms make
the structure hold together and stand up?
How do the shapes and forms make the struc-
ture pleasing to look at or beautiful?
Trace out with finger the geometric forms
found on a picture of a given structure.
Flip book
Laminate the photographs. Add more from
you own collection. Organize them into a
flip book. Have the child use a wipe-off
marker to trace around all of the shapes
found in the structures shown.
3
Lessons Essential questions Project/evidence
Continent Structure
Asia Great Wall of China
Africa Great Sphinx
North America Empire State Building
South America Mexican pyramids
Oceania Opera House
Antarctica Ice Station Byrd
Europe Eiffel Tower
8. 8. The shapes and forms used are organized
in the best arrangement for the structure
stand up against special forces.
Comprehension: conclude, demonstrate,
explain, generalize, interpret
How do these sets of shapes and forms make the
structure hold together and stand up?
What are some of the forms you can find in
these pictures of famous structures?
How do the shapes and forms make the structure
pleasing to look at or beautiful?
Have the children look at thematic posters,
cards and books.
3 D Construction exercise:
Ask for a volunteer to try to build a facsim-
ile of the structures they traced with the
classroom blocks.
Give each child a foundation board. Have
the children choose three favorite foam
forms from the collection.
Have them paint their forms and place
them on their boards.
9. A force is a type of action.
Two types of forces that builders have to be
designed into any structure to make it hold
together and stand up.
Comprehension: conclude, demonstrate
Application: apply, dramatize, show
What are the two forces that builders use to
make a structure strong?
1. Tension is pulling and stretching action
2. Compression is pressing, pushing, squeez-
ing or compacting action.
Kinesthetic exercise: Show tension and
compression with your body
Show tension and compression with your
hands. Ask the children to demonstrate.
Tension: Stand facing a partner with your
feet very close together. Hold each other's
hands and lean backwards. The pulling and
stretching you feel in your arms is tension.
Compression: Face your partner and stand
a feet away. Straighten your arms. Press
your hands against your partner’s hands
and lean into one another. The pressing
and pushing you feel in your arms is com-
pression.
Gym activity
Use your body to act out these forces. Talk
about adding gravity as you push and pull.
Model different types of bridges with your
bodies—beam truss, cantilever, arch, sus-
pension and cable-stayed.
4
Lessons Essential questions Project/evidence
9. 10. Structures must be built in special
ways to hold together and stand up.
Application: apply, change, dramatize,
model, design, test, imagine
Analysis: deduce , examine
Synthesis: compose, construct, crate,
design, develop, invent, , produce
What do builders have to remember when
building a structure?
Structures are built to withstand the natural
forces working against them.
What are these forces?
1. Gravity--the force that holds everything in
the universe together
2. Weight of the structure itself and the mate-
rials inside of it like walls, furniture and
people
3. Intensity of the wind, rain, ice snow
4. Vibration of the earth and of the machines
inside of the structure?
3 D Construction exercise:
Build a simple structure out of blocks, card-
board tubes, straws, tape and folded paper
forms.
Test out your structure by:
Build as high as you can with lightweight
materials.
Blow your structure with your breath, an
electric fan or a hair dryer.
Drip water on your structure.
Shake the table your structure is built upon.
Brainstorm ways to improve the construc-
tions to withstand the external forces that
you have simulated.
Booklet page
Write a poem about an animal or insect in
their structure during a storm.
11.When builders design a structure,
they must think about the forces of na-
ture that will affect their structure.
Analysis: analyze, produce, model, de-
sign, test, imagine
What forces of nature will a structure have to
withstand?
1. Earthquakes
2. Ice, snow
3. Heat
4. Water
5. Soil and sand
Booklet page: Illustrate and label
Draw the types of structures that can be
found in three different types of climates.
3 D Construction exercise:
Have each child make several geometric
forms including cubes, cones, cylinders,
spheres, pyramids, triangular and rectangu-
lar prisms.
Use materials such as clay, paper, foam
board, sticks, straws. Perform several ac-
tions on some of these forms including
soaking, freezing, baking, shaking and bur-
ying them.
Have the children place the remaining
forms on their foundations.
5
Lessons Essential questions Project/evidence
10. picture Type of
structure
Special need served
dam stops flooding
bridge
tower
tunnel connects land
house
school people learn
church
cathedral
temple
store
mall
gym
12. Structures are designed to serve the
special needs for the people who build
them.
Analysis: analyze, deduce, compare
What special needs are fulfilled by the struc-
tures in our world?
Examples:
1. Dams
2. Bridges
3. Towers
4. Tunnels
5. Houses
6. Schools
7. Churches
8. Temples
9. Cathedrals
10. Stores
11. Malls
12. Tombs
Observe and discuss the wall chart, poster
and structure cards.
Example:
13. Structures can be designed for pur-
poses other than special needs.
Evaluation: decide, conclude, rate, as-
sess, argue
Are all structures built out of need?
What makes a structure necessary?
List some of the structures that may not be nec-
essary.
Example:
1. Playground
2. Ferris wheel
3. Sculpture
4. Mansion
5. Ice cream shop
6. Disneyland
7. Tree house
8 . Swimming pool
9. bowling alley
Discussion: Laws
Think of how the world would change if
there were a law that said:
Structures must only be built if they are need-
ed.
or
Structures must only be built in they are not
needed.
Which law will your structure follow?
Booklet page: Illustrate and tell
Draw a picture of your idea for a structure
that follows one of the laws. Why did you
choose this law?
6
Lessons Essential questions Project/evidence
11. Lessons Essential questions Project/evidence
14.Structures are all different and unique
because they reflect the needs and wants
of the people who design and build them.
Synthesis: design, construct, create,
develop
What type of structure would be the most inter-
esting for you if you were a builder?
Construction exercise:
Find the structure in pictures, posters or in
your imagination that you that you like the
best.
Assemble elements of your favorite using
such materials as foam board, cardboard,
toothpicks, clay, wood pieces, rubber bands,
straws. Make several geometric forms out of
these materials and attach them to your
foundation board in any way you wish.
Toothpicks
1. See if you can build a small model of your
favorite by connecting the toothpicks to-
gether with marshmallows, gumdrops, or
small balls of clay.
Clay
1. Roll your clay into a smooth ball.
2. Push a small hole in the middle.
3. Model a small bowl shape.
4. Roll out another slab.
5. Pick it up and bend it into a cylinder
Glue them on your foundation in a design
that you like .
15. Structures are important to people for
a variety of reasons that include both
needs and wants.
Evaluation: choose, judge, decide, ar-
gue
How would you describe the structure you have
built?
Tell a story about the structure or struc-
tures you have designed and built on your
foundation board. Print the story out and
have your teacher take a picture of you
holding your model. This is the cover of
your Structures booklet.
7
12. Make a Booklet About
Structures
On the following frames you will find task
sheets that are written to review lesson
ideas, motivate thought and stimulate
creative approaches to the discussion
ideas. After the full set is competed the
child may assemble a booklet that shows
his or her progress, culminating in an indi-
vidualized hands-on structure.
13. MY BOOK ABOUT
STRUCTURES
These pages may be used for further docu-
mentation of the child’s building process.
STRUCTURE BOOK CONTENTS
14. __ __ __ __
__ __ __
__ __ __
__ __ __
__ __ __ __ __ __
ANIMAL STRUCTURES
Print your words next to the animal structures below.
15. __ __ __ __ __
__ __ __ __
__ __ __ __ __ __
__ __ __ __ __
__ __ __ __ __
HUMAN STRUCTURES
Print your words next to the human structures below.
16. MATCH THE STRUCTURES
Draw a line between the animal structure and the human structure that you think is
most similar.
17. USES OF STRUCTURES
How are these structures used?
STRUCTURE USE
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
_____________________________________________
slide
church
tower
barn
bridge
18. MY FAVORITE
STRUCTURE
Draw your favorite structure.
Where is it located?____________________________________
What is it used for? ___________________________________________________
Why do you like it?____________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________
__________________________________
19. A BEAUTIFUL STRUCTURE
In the box, draw a beautiful structure. Afterwards, answer the questions
below.
Where is it located?____________________________________
What is it used for? ___________________________________________________
Why do you like it?____________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________
__________________________________
20. STRUCTURES IN THREE
CLIMATES
In each box below, draw a different structure that is designed for a spe-
cific climate. Your ideas may be realistic or imaginative.
___________________________________
HOT
TEMPERATE
COLD
21. WHY DO WE NEED THESE
STRUCTURES
Next to each picture, print the need that is fulfilled by the structure.
_______________________________
STRUCTURE NEED
22. MY STRUCTURE LAW
Discussion: Laws
Think of how the world would change if there were a law that said: Structures must
only be built if they are needed. OR Structures must only be built in they are not
needed.
Which law will you choose for your structure? Needed, or not needed?
_____________________________________________________________________
________________________________________
23. MY STRUCTURE
Tell a story about the structure or structures you have designed and built
on your foundation board.
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________
24. MY STRUCTURE
Mount
a photo
of your
struc- ture
here
By ___________________________________
Completed __________________________
25. Trace the Shapes
In Structures
On the following frames you will find im-
ages of structures. Laminate the pages
and create a flip book of traceable imag-
es. The child can use a wipe-off marker to
find all of the shapes contained in the
structures.
32. Architectural Images
On the following frames you will find im-
ages of several types of buildings all
around the world. Print out the images,
neatly trim around the borders, mount on
a background color and laminate. These
can be used for display and discussion in
your classroom as you present your unit
on Structures.
43. Image files and URL’s
On the following frames you will find im-
ages shown in the matrices. All of these
are found in Creative Commons at
Wikipedia.
All other images, including clip art, are
from personal files.