Little Architects: Second Graders Build Plank Houses

As a part of the Peck second grade social studies curriculum, students learn about the indigenous people who inhabited the United States before it was colonized, starting in Alaska and moving their way across the land. They focus on themes like culture, climate, and family traditions.

Now in the Pacific Northwest region, one main area of focus during the lesson are the homes that indigenous people constructed to fit extended families, otherwise known as plank houses. As students studied these handmade homes, they brought their knowledge from their social studies class to their tech class with Lower School Technology, Innovation, & Design Integrator Jen Garvey to bring what they learned to life.

Using Peck’s Agency by Design thinking routine, students spent time looking closely at plank houses: highlighting and noticing their design features, build materials, and how they were constructed. Grouped into pairs, students worked together to design their very own plank houses, deciding on how the final product would look, and what classroom materials they would use.

With their designs drawn on paper, pairs used these blueprints to construct their 3D structures from popsicle sticks, paper towel rolls, hot glue, and other classroom materials.

“This process helped students thoughtfully plan their own designs before heading to the lab to build,” said Garvey. “Plank house project coincides nicely with the second grade essential question of ‘How does learning about myself and others help us connect?’” We thought about how our own houses might be designed based on where we live and the resources available.”