Exploration of NYC landmarks from the late 19th century - early 20th century through building with clay

A 6-week activity where students construct replicas of city landmarks out of clay, while becoming urban planners and learning to scale 3D models 

Unit Overview

The Basics
Experiences:  Novice
Age Group:  16- 17
Group Size:  40 - 45
Hours:   48 hrs

Key Words: U.S. history, urbanization, ratio, proportion, scaling, unit conversion, NYC landmarks

Cost Per Student: 10.00 - 20.00 USD
Tools: drills, wood tools, laptops, 
Materials: 1 piece of wood, clay, screws, clay tool set, metal wire. 
Learning Objectives
  • Planning and design process
  • Learn about NYC landmarks (Empire State Building, subway system, Triangle Shirtwaist Factory, Statue of Liberty) and how they represent either urbanization and/or the immigrant experience.
  • Math: ratio, proportion, and scaling
  • Reflect on the collaborative nature of the project and discuss personal strengths and areas for growth.   
Performing Task
  • ​Connect NYC landmarks with U.S. History
  • Be able to scale "up and down" between a model and the actual size of structures.
  • Use the measurements of their scale model to calculate the measurements of a larger building of proportional size.
  • Convert between the various units used for measurement (inches, feet, yards, centimeters, meters, etc.)
  • Maximize the amount of material resources given and create a written plan before construction with the amount of material needed with detailed dimensions.

Suggested Steps

  1. Introduction to the project, explanation of the different tasks and knowledge domains. Team formation.
  2. Wood preparation for the city board.
  3. Introduction to U.S History in the late 19th century- 20th century
  4. Introduction to scaling and measurement units
  5. Research of NYC landmark
  6. Understanding transformation from 2D to 3D using ratio and proportions
  7. Construction of landmark
  8. Discussion on urban design
  9. History of US migration in NYC and its relation with landmarks
  10. Construction of city
  11. Setup and presentation