Arlington, VA — SIGAL Construction Corporation participated in the AIA DC and Washington Architectural Foundation’s Architecture in Schools volunteer program this past spring. Kristina Castro, a Project Manager at SIGAL and Registered Architect, led the volunteer effort at SIGAL. For eight weeks, Kristina and numerous SIGAL employees spent one hour each week at Kings Glen Elementary School in Springfield, Virginia teaching sixth grade students about construction and architecture.
The students had recently studied the thirteen colonies and Kristina developed a curriculum of slideshows and project based activities to teach the basic principles of architecture such as function, materials, aesthetics, structures, scale and drawing conventions through colonial architecture. “There is a lot more to a house than wood” one student admired after Kristina used the three different colonial housing types to explain how material and aesthetic designs differed, based on regional materials and climate. Another student said, “My favorite part of this program was making the gumdrop tower and learning that triangles are stronger than squares” after the structures lesson.
To teach scale and proportion, Kristina had the students measure each other, draw themselves to scale and then make a pipe cleaner scale figure to illustrate how human proportions dictate the size of buildings and elements. The program concluded with the final project titled “Model of Freedom” where the students used the principles learned to design and build 3D scale models of their own free room. The function of their room could be anything they wanted; the ultimate video game room or even the never-ending pizza room. “I had so much fun building and modeling my room! It was awesome,” one student remarked.
The student’s work is being exhibited at the Ballston mall from May 8, 2014 until the closing reception held on May 21, 2014.
About SIGAL Construction Corporation
Founded in 1977, SIGAL Construction Corporation (SIGAL) is one of Washington’s premier general contractors, known throughout the industry for its dedication to sustainability, high quality, cost consciousness, excellent client relations, and the ability to successfully complete unique and challenging projects. A founding partner of the USGBC, SIGAL offers superior general contracting, preconstruction, construction management, design/build, and sustainability services. SIGAL’s diverse project portfolio includes institutions of learning (K-12 and higher education), Federal and municipal agencies, law firms, corporations, hotels, technology firms, biotech companies, healthcare providers, multi-family housing, and associations/nonprofits. To learn more about SIGAL Construction Corporation, please visit www.sigal.com.
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More Information
Melyssa Leibowitz, Marketing Coordinator
703-302-1570 or email at: mleibowitz@sigal.com
www.SIGAL.com
