Welcome Teachers

Getting Started with a Teacher Account

DiscoverDesign.org is a platform created to guide students through the design process, engaging them in inquiry-based, authentic projects that develop their problem-solving skills. Teachers can assign existing challenges or create new ones for their students to complete. These challenges lead students through ideation and research, culminating to a finished product. DiscoverDesign allows teachers and other students to comment on projects, creating a feedback platform. DiscoverDesign is ideal for any class looking to further push their STEAM students.

Note: In order for school-managed emails to receive account information from the site, the email address discoverdesign@architecture.org must be added to a school’s approved email list. Not doing so may cause communication from this site to be blocked entirely or end up in a spam folder.

DiscoverDesign in Classrooms

What can I do with DiscoverDesign?

Everyone is a designer. We make design decisions everyday, and without meaning to do so we use steps of the design process. With design challenges, your students are led through the six-step design process to create a solution to a real-world problem. Along the way, students can receive feedback from you and their peers.

You can:

Why is DiscoverDesign useful for my students and I?

  • DiscoverDesign supports 21st century skills including creativity, critical thinking, communication, and collaboration - using new media and promoting technological literacy.
  • DiscoverDesign aligns to key standards and curricular and pedagogical frameworks

How do I use DiscoverDesign?

  • Check out the tutorial below and download the teacher guide for an overview on how to get started
  • Use this guide to help structure a design challenge for your students
  • Get your students comfortable with iteration and feedback
  • Explore resources for using DiscoverDesign in the classroom

Teacher Resources

DiscoverDesign Promotes 21st Century Skills

21st Century Skills include creativity, critical thinking, communication, collaboration - using new media and promoting technological literacy.

Case studies explore award-winning green schools around the country and include interactive instructional materials – videos, slideshows, guided questions, architectural construction drawings, interviews with architects, digital models.

Students can choose real-world design challenges and post media from a variety of sources on the Web to inform their process.

Connect Students with mentors

If you’re already connected to architects and engineers in your own community, they can create free accounts and begin volunteering as online mentors to provide feedback on the various stages of your students’ design projects in the Student Gallery

To identify potential mentors, we encourage you to reach out to your local chapters of:

Or, you can contact us at the Chicago Architecture Center and we can help get the word out to mentors we know about you and your students.

Guidelines for Safe Classroom Use

If you have any questions about safety and privacy on DiscoverDesign, learn more about how we've protected students' identity. Only anonymous usernames and cities are displayed and students' full names and school names are never shown. We never share account info with anyone.

FAQs and Technical Help

Visit the student help page for more info, a student tutorial video, and technical help.

Questions about using DiscoverDesign in your classroom?

Contact Us