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Green Day: an eco-homes design challenge

Bottle house

Date: 17th March 2005

Place: Stocksbridge High School, Stocksbridge, UK

Time length: 1 hour workshop repeated over 1 day

Partnerships: Stocksbridge Comprehensive School & Science Week

Participants: Approximately 130 young people aged 12-13 and 5 teachers.

Goals/Aims: To get students excited about science, in this case to raise awareness of the impact of dwellings on the environment and the potential to minimise this impact through good design and appropriate use of technology.

Methodology: The session included background information on Architecture and design for sustainable living and an opportunity for students to apply their new (as well as their existing) knowledge in a design exercise in teams.

Description of Events: Began with a background careers talk on what architects do and the route to becoming an architect. A scenario was then presented in which the students are now architects who have moved back to Stocksbridge and have been invited to take part in a design competition for a prototype eco-home for the town. The school field provides the site.

Caravan house

Needs to:

• Be an environmentally-sound design
• Provide accommodation for a couple or a small family

As architects, the first thing they do is some research. At this point a short film was shown about a specific 'eco home'. A discussion followed and main points recapped. A wide variety of alternative approaches to sustainable living and eco-home design were shown and discussed through a slide show.

The competition submission requirements were made clear (1 poster per group including drawings and diagrams with notes to show the design). Students worked in groups for the rest of the session to develop their designs. A sheet of guidance questions was provided to prompt thought about different aspects of the design. The workshop facilitator circulated and discussed the ideas as they emerged, providing informal tutorials.

Outcomes: Students learned new concepts and terminology relating to architecture and design for sustainable living. Their awareness of the relationship between dwellings and the sustainability of the environment was raised and they were made aware that the impact of dwellings on the environment could be reduced through appropriate design and technology. They gained insight into the design process and working in a team through direct experience.

Section

Rosie Parnell

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