A dream house projectAuthor(s): RICHARD POWERSSource: The Arithmetic Teacher, Vol. 9, No. 5 (MAY 1962), pp. 280-281Published by: National Council of Teachers of MathematicsStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/41184631 .

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A dream house project

RICHARD POWERS Public Schools, Garden City, New York Mr. Powers teaches sixth grade at Stratford Avenue School in Garden City.

After your students have worked with a ruler, after they have drawn some things to scale, and after they have brought in house plans, try having each student make a "dream house. " The results of such an activity are going to be worthwhile and, perhaps, startling.

Children like houses. They like to see houses constructed, and they have their own ideas as to what they would like in their own or their future homes. You may have to decide whether you are going to encourage, discourage, or ignore proposed bowling alleys, heliports, or gymnasium rooms, but in this day and age pools, dens, stables, or kennels might well be part of a future house. Regardless, you may rest assured that if the class is given a rather free rein, the students will produce some highly imaginative homes as well as some that will be surprisingly modest and tra- ditional.

After my sixth graders had done some work with the ruler, area, and perimeter, they drew to scale objects, such as the desk top, our classroom, and a room at home. They were encouraged to bring in house plans - the plans of their own home or magazine displays of house plans.

After individual house plans were ap- proved, the class was given two weeks to build houses. This work was done, for the most part, at home, though a few did all of their work in school. I found that most children find it easiest to draw up their plan, paste it on cardboard, and build up oak tag walls on the lines of the plan itself. However, some of the students like to use

the building blocks they have at home. In fact, it is most interesting to encourage the use of any materials and any approach. Following this tack, I encouraged the girls to use doll furniture and the boys added their cars and trucks. We concluded the house building by bringing together all of our houses for a house painting and touch- up session held in the classroom.

Our house building activity culminated in a classroom exhibit. We had to plan the actual mechanics of the exhibit - how to show our houses and how to guide the crowd. We solved the problem by placing the houses on individual desks and arrang- ing the desks in a large square. Welcoming teams consisted of a speaker and four guides. When a student was not working as a welcoming team member he was ex- plaining his and neighboring houses to visitors. All intermediate classes and many parents visited the exhibit.

280 The Arithmetic Teacher

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Building dream houses is fun. More im- portant, it opens up to the student won- derful insights into the related worlds of mathematics, art, and our society itself. For example, one boy whose father is a community planner, brought in plans of a proposed housing development. Lot divi- sion and road layouts were interesting fea- tures of the plan which generated a discus- sion of the respective roles of the town, the builder, and the homeowner.

In conclusion, if you want a project which requires physical dexterity, imag- ination and critical thinking - try building dream houses.

Seminar and field study to be held abroad

A series of seminars designed specifically for school and university educators and their lay boards is being planned in November, 1962, by the National School Boards Association, The International Commission of Phi Delta Kappa, and The Comparative Education Society.

Specifically, the aims for this seminar and field study are seven in number. 1 To develop a deeper insight into educational

ways of thinking of selected countries in Europe. To penetrate the minds of their edu- cators and to analyze how they operate rela- tive to ends and means in education.

2 To develop a better awareness of our own ways of educational thinking in the U. S. To lay bare our own minds and our own ways of operating relative to ends in education.

3 To examine and test many generalizations on European education which we in the U. S. have formulated.

4 To examine and analyze critically the pro- grams for education change and reform which have been put into operation or are being planned in Europe.

5 To develop and refine our understanding of the problems for education in Europe.

6 To analyze and penetrate the national pe- culiarity of European country education and the conditions which have produced each system.

7 To establish personal contacts and discussions with educators, teachers, and students on all institutional levels. The dates have been set for November 9 to

November 26. Outstanding educators of each nation will direct the seminars and field studies in each city visited.

The proposed itinerary is: Friday, Nov. 9, midnight departure from New York City; Sat- urday, Nov. 10, arrival in Edinburgh, Scotland; Tuesday, Nov. 13, in Amsterdam, Holland; Friday, Nov. 16, in Frankfurt, Germany; Mon- day, Nov. 19, in Vienna, Austria; Thursday, Nov. 22, in Kiev, U.S.S.R.; Monday, Nov. 26, return to the U. S. Many stops may be arranged with an extra charge on the return home or even a stop in Moscow.

All inquiries and requests for application forms should be sent to Dr. Harold V. Webb, Acting Executive Director, National School Boards Association, 1940 Sheridan Road, Evanston, Illinois.

May 1962 281

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