Floor and Wall Construction- Architecture and Building Trades Lesson Slideshow

This lesson builds on the concepts of my lesson on foundations by explaining the ways that floors and walls are constructed in conventional building techniques, focusing mainly on wood-frame construction. I use this lesson with my architecture students, focusing more on design considerations, how these systems work, terminology, and why buildings might be designed a certain way. This slideshow would also make a terrific introduction to key concepts for building trades students, though I usually stop short of explaining exact construction techniques for builders.

Big ideas addressed in this lesson are:

• What are the most common building materials used in wall & floor construction?
• How does a superstructure connect to a foundation?
• How are floors supported and constructed?
• How does a spanning table work?
• How are staircases designed into a floor framing plan?
• What is included in conventional wall framing?
• What is a framing carpenter’s career like?
• How are walls connected at corners?
• What structural layers are added to walls, and why?
• What is included in a framing plan?
• What are some alternative methods of wall construction?

Keep an eye out for more resources related to this topic!