In 2021, RIBA Learning launched a national Reading Architecture literacy project designed to help RIBA understand what architecture books we should be recommending to children, young people and teachers.
During the summer term of 2021, over 650 students from 27 schools across England were asked to read and review a set of architecture books. The winning books were announced in November 2021. To celebrate World Book Day RIBA Learning has teamed up with John Keats Primary School to design a set of cross-curricular learning resources that will enable teachers and pupils to enjoy award-winning books through practical literacy and design-focused activities.
Key Stage One
House of Happy Spirits – Discover the colourful work of architect, Friedensreich Hundertwasser, and explore this resource to teach pupils how to critique and review a text, understand how colour and nature can be used in architecture, and to use inspiration from architects’ designs to create new colourful house designs.
Number 7 Evergreen Street – Use this resource to help children learn how to predict what will happen in a story based on clues hidden in the text and images, understand that neighbourhoods are places people live in and need certain buildings and to create a masterplan of a neighbourhood for residents of Number 7 Evergreen Street.
The Homes We Build – Explore this resource to enable pupils to understand how an architect works with many other professionals to make homes, the skills and roles of built environment professionals and to create thoughts and opinions about a book and formulate them into a review.
Key Stage Two
Step Inside Homes Through History – Learn how home design has developed through the centuries and encourage pupils to critique an architectural text whilst designing their own period homes.
The Homes We Build – Enable pupils to develop and enhance a broader understanding of architecture and what architects do, develop basic skills such as time management, teamwork, leadership and critical thinking and learn how to critique an architecture focused text.
We offer a free national schools programme for all key stages. Explore climate literacy and design with professional architects through creative and practical workshops. Register your school to take part.
Download the resources below.
