Architecture organization provides outreach through teaching elementary school students
Monday, February 10, 2025
Media Contact: Tanner Holubar | Communications Specialist | 405-744-2065 | tanner.holubar@okstate.edu
Architecture is an art form that expresses cultural significance around the world. From everyday eateries to grand and glorious cathedrals, architects have made their mark on the world for thousands of years.
The School of Architecture in the College of Engineering, Architecture and Technology at Oklahoma State University features a student organization dedicated to sharing their inspiration and passion for architecture.
Architecture Students Teaching Elementary Kids is geared toward showing elementary students how shapes and math fit into the architecture design process.
Hannah Graham, a third-year architecture design major and the current president of ASTEK, initially got involved as a first-year student. She has served in various roles with the group and has a passion for volunteering. She also enjoys being able to share how architecture brings artistic skills to the table, as she herself wanted to be an artist as a kid.
I always want to do my part with ASTEK because it is always fun.
“It’s been great,” Graham stated. “I love going to schools, and I specifically like volunteering with children. They might not all want to be an architect, but we hope it helps them better appreciate the world they live in.”
Since its formation in the ’90s, the group has met with local elementary schools in the Stillwater area. ASTEK will meet with four classes at Will Rogers Elementary in the spring 2025 semester. ARCH students will share many of the fundamental concepts they learn in the School of Architecture.
There are several students who attend regular meetings for the group and Graham estimated that about half of her fellow third-year class is involved with ASTEK.
Architecture students plan an eight-week curriculum, covering a different unit each week in 30-minute sessions. The sessions cover topics such as building textures, construction materials and how floor plans are designed. In fall 2024, the group worked on producing a course booklet for students to keep track of their progress.
One of the first lessons is to draw the floor plan of the classroom showing where students sit. This exercise shows students how various locations on the same floor plan can be differentiated from one another. This is like how a city layout might look, with different buildings represented in diverse ways. Students will then take part in a city planning project where they get to design a building and make a model.
Students first learn how to draw a floor plan of a building and teach them how to layout spaces.
Then they learn how to draw an elevation, which architects draw up to show different heights and how the building should appear when completed.
They then work for three weeks on creating models of their buildings. The ARCH students cut and measure the materials which the elementary students then put on their models. This is the way to finish the coursework by providing a fun, hands-on STEAM activity.
“At the end, we bring the models back to the OSU architecture building, and we have a day where they can come by and we give them a tour of the building,” Graham stated.
Younger ARCH students are encouraged to get involved with ASTEK, as it provides them with a chance to pick the brains of their peers. By instructing the elementary students, it also reinforces their own learning.
“It’s also been a good way to get to know people in my class a lot better, especially with the upper years,” Graham said. “By fostering relationships with them, they’ve helped me with projects and getting immersed in the architecture school.”
The group has been able to build on what was established in the 1990s, even using an updated version of the original coursework. Graham said she always enjoys being able to be a part of ASTEK.
“It is great working with the kids, they are funny and make me laugh. I also like instructing the kids alongside my peers. It’ s just an enjoyable time overall. I always want to do my part with ASTEK because it is always fun.”