Future House

 What will life on Earth be like a century from now? In our Future House class, students imagine and design a Lego model of a home they design for the year 2118. First, they study what daily life was like one hundred years ago and then pivot to consider how life might change one hundred years in the future. They study the writings of futurists, learn about new "smart homes" and consider what phones, stoves, sofas, televisions and cars might look like a century from now. Students use math, writing and presentation skills as they draw up an extensive blueprint of their future house, compose a "Day in the Life" story that takes place in 2118 and work with geometric calculations as they design their blueprint. Time travel may not really be possible but our Future House students will find themselves in a different time and place! 

• Design their own "Future House" that exists in the year 2118 in poster form and as a Lego model.
• Study what life was like 100 years ago in the United States as they think about what life might be like 100 years in the future
• Watch a video of the predictions made in 1960 about what life would be like today --- and judge its accuracy
• Write a short story about life in the year 2118
• Draw a diagram of a car of the future that will be in their "Future Home's" garage
• See a collection of videos on "smart homes" and what houses might be like in the future to help students generate their own ideas
• Learn what futurists believe could be some of they most difficult challenges the world will face in the 21st Century
• Study techniques for making effective presentations
• Present to parents a model and diagram of their "House of 2118" describing and demonstrating their futuristic furniture and appliances room-by-room 

Class Specifications:

• 12-hour program 
• Future House can be implemented as an after-school program, summer camp or in-class project
• Supplies needed include laptop, projector or TV display, poster boards, construction paper, basic art materials