A little unknown fact about myself is that I actually studied Architecture for about 18 months before I switched to commerce so when we received the Discovering Architecture book I was THRILLED. It is not a topic we have ever covered before and as soon as I started paging through the book I was inspired to share it with the kids and hopefully create a few activities for us to do together.
The book starts with the Architecture of the Ancient times – the Pyramids, the Parthenon and Ancient Roman Towns. I think this is the perfect introduction as the buildings from way back are so amazing and still influence so much in today’s world. They talk about key Greek elements, like the different orders and significant parts of Greek buildings – the pediment and frieze – all good terms for kids to become familiar with. And the Roman Towns – they way they were planned and structured and the brilliant set-up for a Roman house (the Egyptian, Geek and Roman buildings would actually be great pages to include in History activities).
And then onto Arches and Vaults with examples of how they have been used in famous historical buildings.
The book also includes some famous Architects – Andrea Palladio, Antoni Gaudi, Le Corbusier, Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Zaha Hadid, explaining their building style and giving examples of famous buildings that they created.
Throughout the book they highlight key words, terms and architectural elements which I think is great from a general vocabulary point of view.
I have really enjoyed reading this book and am planning on using it as a starting point for a few crafting / building sessions with the kids.
Admin Bit – we were given this copy of the book but all opinions expressed are mine
Also just to mention I have noticed if you search on Amazon for this book some links say it is only available 1 Sep – that is not correct it is already available – here is a link – Discovering Architecture
I do include Affiliate links. If you follow an affiliate link and go on to purchase that product, I will be paid a very small commission, however your cost will remain the same. I only include affiliate links for products that we use and love.
ofamily learning together 