The release of the new Home Designer 2016 has brought even more powerful tools to DIY home designer enthusiasts. But, what many don’t realize is the major impact Home Designer Architectural 2016 can have on middle school and secondary school classrooms. This program allows students to access advanced, yet easy-to-use tools that will help them complete various design projects.

Recently, organizations like the Design LAB in Cincinnati, OH, have found success in introducing students to design education programs that help broaden their understanding of the built environment. These programs not only incorporate STEM topics, but also develop critical thinking, problem solving, verbal and visual communication, creativity and presentation skills. This year over 1,500 students in Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky schools participated in the Design LAB’s “Dwelling” challenge. These students studied the basics of architecture and construction to design their residential buildings, and then actually built a 3D model based on their work.

With the help of Home Designer Architectural, you can take this project and future projects like it to new heights.

Home Designer Helps Students Build

Home Designer Architectural introduces students to the basic concepts of architectural design and engineering. With it, students become familiar with CAD tools, 3D rendering and typical building resources. This software application offers classrooms the ability to actively engage students in skills that serve as a foundation for future study and possible careers. It can easily adapt to many subject areas and grade levels.

The assignment to design a home for a particular person or client could incorporate many topics, including: art, ecology, engineering, geometry, science and social studies. The “Dwelling” challenge included residential designs for characters from The Odyssey, Maya Angelou, Picasso, Dr. Seuss and many more. This cross-curricular aspect of home design expands the possibilities for integrating relevant STEM practices in early education. Obviously, a twelve-year old can’t be expected to design the next Sydney Opera House, but who says he or she can’t have some fun recreating Cinderella’s castle or Jack and Annie’s Magic Tree House?

Get Started with Home Designer Architectural

Teach your students the concepts and real-life applications of residential construction and design with help from the following features:

60 pre-loaded design templates. Don’t stress over teaching your students the minute details of design, simply use established elements from the Home Designer library.

Preview the placement and orientation of objects. Students can see their designs in real-time and make edits accordingly.

Rendering controls allow you to set up camera angles and locations to create realistic 3D renderings.

Cost Estimating and material list creation allows students to automatically generate material lists for budget planning.

Standard CAD tools introduce students to basic CAD concepts without overwhelming them with complex functionality.

Check out additional Home Designer Architectural 2016 features, and see how it stacks up to Chief Architect – the architectural design program used in secondary and higher education environments. Architectural design shapes our future environment, so why not discover how it can help shape your classroom?