Learn how architects use paper to represent plans for buildings. Make two- and three-dimensional representations of your home using close observation and measurements.  Part of an OurStory module entitled Building Beautiful Buildings, this activity includes step-by-step instructions

Think about your favorite building in the world.If it's nearby, go out and take a picture of it, if not, pull a photo out of a book or off of the internet. Then use this picture to identify all of the geometric shapes you can see that make up the building, shapes the building's architect used to

Architects design the buildings we use every day. Their designs solve problems, like how to make a sturdy building, and reflect their ideas about beauty and history. By using this OurStory module from the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History, children and adults can learn about archi

Take a trip out into your community, or into a town nearby. Look around you; what do you see? Using provided resources on different styles of architecture, identify and discuss the different architecture your see, how it is similar on some buildings, and different on others. Part of an OurStory m

Take a close look at two architectural drawings to learn about symmetry and scale. Part of an OurStory module entitled Building Beautiful Buildings, this activity includes step-by-step instructions, images of museum objects, and background information on architecture. OurStory is designe

This lesson plan, developed in support of the exhibition Paper Engineering: Fold, Pull, Pop, and Turn, introduces students to the variety of mechanisms included in movable books and encourages them to build their own pop-up in support of a social studies lesson. Making pop-ups subtly rei

Paper Engineering: Fold, Pull, Pop & Turn, an exhibition developed by the Smithsonian Libraries, presents more than 50 examples of action-packed constructions and inspired works of art spanning 500 years. The related Web site includes a blog, exhibition brochure, and video

The focus of this online exhibition is the history of mathematics education in America.  Beginning with the advent of public education in the early nineteenth century and ending in the modern Information Age, students will learn how advances in technology and changes in education theory have

In this activity, children create top hats out of paper by reading or listening to directions that use simple terms from geometry. After making the hat, they measure their heights with and without the hat, and then take a picture wearing the hat. This resource is included in an OurStory

Just how big is the Star-Spangled Banner? In this classroom activity, students will visualize the area of the famous flag by measuring pieces of string and attaching them to create an outline of the Star-Spangled Banner. This activity is included in the online exhibition entitled The