Instructor’s guide for BIM Modeling and Management

in Revit

This instructor guide is a comprehensive tool for facilitating this content in the classroom. Prepare to teach this
course by thoroughly reviewing this document, as well as all related course materials and resources. We
suggest a solid foundation in the core functionality of Revit is required to deliver this course.
The overall course contains the following resources:
• 8:17 hours of lesson videos covering all the topics in the course.
• Over 70 different data files for use when following the video lessons.
• Quiz questions at the conclusion of the course.
• 9 practice exercises with solution videos.
• 6 challenge assignments with recommended assessment criteria.

Pre-requisites:
Preferably, students should have completed the Fundamentals of Architecture in Revit course or have good,
practical knowledge of the basic functionality of Revit in relation to architectural design.

Structure of the course:

The course is split into sixteen modules and is designed to build on the topics covered in the Revit
Fundamentals for Architectural Design course. However, it will also introduce many new topics to advance the
students knowledge to a higher level.

Lesson Videos
Each lesson includes an introduction video introducing the topics that will be covered in that lesson. Each
video lesson is between 4 and 12 minutes long, with the majority being around 8 minutes long. They all begin
with a list of Learning Objectives covered in the video and end with a recap of those learning objectives. The
dataset mentioned throughout all the videos are available if students wish to follow along or practice after the
video.
All the videos will take 8:17 hours to watch, although if you are using the datasets and following along this will
increase the time.
Practice Exercises
There are 9 practice exercises included, each exploring a different set of topics. The practice exercises are
designed to give students an opportunity to test their knowledge and apply what they have learned. Each
practice exercise is accompanied by a video solution. The practice exercises are shown below along with
recommended durations:

Practice Exercise Schedule

Title Duration

Practice Exercise Embed Walls 25 Mins

Practice Exercise Create Ceilings 35 Mins

Practice Exercise Hosted Railings 30 Mins

Practice Exercise Create Areas 25 Mins

Practice Exercise View Template 25 Mins

Practice Exercise Model In-Place 30 Mins

Practice Exercise Hosted Family 35 Mins

Practice Exercise Link Models 25 Mins

Practice Exercise Project Coordination 25 Mins

Challenge Assignments
There are 6 challenge assignments included, each one focusing on a set of topics covered in the course.
Students are presented a challenge in an applicable real-world situation, and they apply their skills and the
techniques learned to solve the challenge. A grading rubric is provided for the instructor, giving guidelines on
assessment criteria and suggested mark weighting for specific tools and processes that may have been used.
The challenge assignment exercises are shown with the relevant lessons. You can also encourage students
to work in small groups, first discussing the desired outputs from the model and working collectively to derive
the best process and execution in Revit.

Challenge Assignment Schedule

Title Duration

Challenge Assignment Model by Face 30 Mins

Challenge Assignment Glazed Roof-Room Data 40 Mins

Challenge Assignment Create a Key Schedule 40 Mins

Challenge Assignment Nested Components 45 Mins

Challenge Assignment Use PDF and Image Files 35 Mins

Challenge Assignment Create Refurbishment 45 Mins

Quiz questions at the conclusion of the course
Quiz questions at the conclusion of the course are provided for students to measure what they have learned
against realistic multiple-choice questions.

Teaching the Course Contents in a Class

Each lesson is listed below along with suggested time allocations for instruction. The referenced
demonstrations are based on the video instruction included in the course. Review the video tutorials for the
detailed instruction in each lesson.

Lesson 01: Modeling Walls

Total Time In-Class Required for Lesson: 90 minutes
Discuss Objectives: 15 Minutes
Demonstrate: 37 Minutes

Discussion Prompts:
• How should wall layers join between different wall types?
• Reasons for creating wall panels.
• Where would non-rectangular walls be used?
• Real world examples of where a sweep or reveal might be used.

Learning Objectives
• Assign function to wall layers.
• Position core boundary layers.
• Control junctions with Wall Joins tool.
• Embed walls to create panels.
• Use the Cut tool to embed walls.
• Attach walls to floors and roofs.
• Edit the wall profile to non-rectangular shapes.
• Create sloping walls.
• Create a base board and coping stone using the Sweep tool.
• Create a wall feature using the Reveal tool.
• Import a profile to create a Sweep type.

Review Objectives: 10 Minutes

Optional: Practice Exercise Embed Walls: 25 Minutes

Assessment through quiz questions at the conclusion of the course

Lesson 02: Modeling Curtain Walls
Total Time In-Class Required for Lesson: 60 minutes
Discuss Objectives: 10 Minutes
Demonstrate: 30 Minutes

Discussion Prompts:
• Where are curtain walls used?
• What kind of panels might be used? (Metal, Wood, Glazed, etc)
• Grid patterns to create different designs.

Learning Objectives
• Place new curtain walls.
• Change basic walls to curtain walls.
• Edit type properties to adjust curtain grid lines and mullions.
• Add extra grid lines to curtain walls.
• Edit curtain grid lines and segments.
• Add mullions to curtain walls.
• Techniques for selecting curtain panels.
• Create and apply new curtain panel types.
• Use match properties to change curtain panel types.
• Adjust curtain grids to fit door sizes.
• Load a curtain wall door family.
• Change a curtain wall panel for a door.

Review Objectives: 10 Minutes

Assessment through quiz questions at the conclusion of the course

Lesson 03: Modeling Floors and Ceilings

Total Time In-Class Required for Lesson: 135 minutes
Discuss Objectives: 10 Minutes
Demonstrate: 40 Minutes

Discussion Prompts:
• Different types of ceiling (Tiles, Plasterboard, etc).
• Types of Hosted objects (Lights, Smoke Detectors, Speakers, etc).
• Examples of slab edges.
• Reasons for sloped floors.

Learning Objectives
• Create a ceiling using the automatic and sketch options.
• Edit ceiling boundaries to create an inset ceiling.
• Create and edit ceiling types.
• Adjust ceiling grid setting out.
• Place ceiling hosted components
• Align components to the ceiling grid.
• Array components across the grid.
• Create a floor upstand using the slab edge tool.
• Edit slab edge types to assign profiles and materials.
 • Apply slopes to floor slabs.
• Add split lines and points.
• Assign variable thickness to floor layers.

Review Objectives: 10 Minutes

Optional: Practice Exercise Create Ceilings: 35 Minutes

Assessment through Quiz questions at the conclusion of the course

Lesson 04: Modeling Roofs

Total Time In-Class Required for Lesson: 70 minutes
Discuss Objectives: 5 Minutes
Demonstrate: 18 Minutes

Discussion Prompts:
• Examples of glazed roofs and rooflights.
• How dormer windows are built.
• Examples of roof eaves and fascia angles.

Learning Objectives
• Create vertical openings in an existing roof.
• Create a glazed skylight roof
• Apply mullions to the glazed roof
• Create a roof dormer.
• Adjust the fascia angle and depth of a roof.

Review Objectives: 5 Minutes

Optional: Challenge Assignment Glazed Roof-Room Data: 40 Minutes

Assessment through quiz questions at the conclusion of the course

Lesson 05: Modeling Stairs and Railings
Total Time In-Class Required for Lesson: 50 minutes
Discuss Objectives: 5 Minutes
Demonstrate: 7:30 Minutes

Discussion Prompts:
• Discuss how railings might be used to model other objects such as fences, etc.

Learning Objectives
• Edit railing paths on stairs to customise handrails.
• Host railings on floors, roofs, and walls.

Review Objectives: 5 Minutes

Optional: Practice Exercise Hosted Railings: 30 Minutes

Assessment through quiz questions at the conclusion of the course

Lesson 06: Modeling Site and Topography

Total Time In-Class Required for Lesson: 30 minutes
Discuss Objectives: 5 Minutes
Demonstrate: 18 Minutes

Discussion Prompts:
• Importance of designing buildings with the correct topography in mind.

Learning Objectives
• Link a DWG containing contours.
• Create a toposurface from DWG contours.
• Simplify the toposurface points.
• Adjust the display of surface contours.
• Edit toposurface points.
• Split a toposurface into separate surfaces.
• Create a sub-region.
• Create a building pad in a toposurface.
• Add site components to a toposurface.

Review Objectives: 5 Minutes

Assessment through quiz questions at the conclusion of the course

Lesson 07: Modeling Massing
Total Time In-Class Required for Lesson: 125 minutes
Discuss Objectives: 10 Minutes
Demonstrate: 33 Minutes

Discussion Prompts:
• Conceptual design workflow.
• Why start with a Mass model?
• Develop model through design stages.

Learning Objectives
• Create a new mass family.
• Create solid forms from linework.
• Use levels and reference planes to host linework.
• Create solid forms from edges and linework.
• Use object faces to host linework.
• Create void forms.
• Push/pull techniques for editing mass forms.
• Edit with x-ray mode.
• Edit profiles of mass forms.
• Load and place a mass family
• Create mass floors.
• Use model by face tools to develop the model.
• Update the model after editing the mass family.

Review Objectives: 10 Minutes

Optional: Challenge Assignment Model by Face: 30 Minutes

Assessment through quiz questions at the conclusion of the course

Lesson 08: Modeling for Generative Design
Total Time In-Class Required for Lesson: 45 minutes
Discuss Objectives: 5 Minutes
Demonstrate: 33 Minutes

Discussion Prompts:
• Discuss how generative design will impact the future of Architecture.

Learning Objectives
• Understand the generative design process
• Understand design goals and outcomes
• Create a simple Dynamo script
• Define inputs and outputs
• Understand ranking criteria
• Create a study
• Explore outcomes

Review Objectives: 5 Minutes

Assessment through quiz questions at the conclusion of the course

Lesson 09: Modeling Rooms and Areas

Total Time In-Class Required for Lesson: 50 minutes
Discuss Objectives: 5 Minutes
Demonstrate: 15 Minutes

Discussion Prompts:
• Why are Areas important to a design?
• Why are Room Data sheets important during construction?

Learning Objectives
• Create an area scheme.
• Create area plans and area boundaries.
• Place areas.
• Locate components by room.
• Assign a room color scheme.
• Create a room data schedule.

Review Objectives: 5 Minutes

Optional: Practice Exercise Create Areas: 25 Minutes

Assessment through quiz questions at the conclusion of the course

Lesson 10: Working with Families and Parameters
Total Time In-Class Required for Lesson: 145 minutes
Discuss Objectives: 10 Minutes
Demonstrate: 52 Minutes

Discussion Prompts:
• What type of families are required for architects?
• Why are parameters important?

Learning Objectives
• Set-up a model-in-place component.
• Create solid forms.
• Assign materials.
• Create void forms.
• Create new loadable families.
• Defining the parametric framework.
• Creating parametric solid forms
• Assign material parameters.
• Create family types.
• Load and place components.
• Use nested components.
• Connect nested parameters.
• Assign a simple formula to a parameter.
• Understand family hosting.
• Create a wall hosted family.
• Place a hosted family in a project.

Review Objectives: 10 Minutes

Optional: Practice Exercise Model In-Place: 25 Minutes
Challenge Assignment Nested Components: 45 Minutes

Assessment through quiz questions at the conclusion of the course

Lesson 11: Modeling Materials

Total Time In-Class Required for Lesson: 25 minutes
Discuss Objectives: 5 Minutes
Demonstrate: 12 Minutes

Discussion Prompts:
• Material properties and textures.

Learning Objectives
• Duplicate materials and assign appearance properties.
• Explore Autodesk material libraries.
• Adjust render appearance settings.
• Assign material by category.
• Assign material by type.
 • Assign material by instance.
• Assign material by paint.

Review Objectives: 5 Minutes

Assessment through quiz questions at the conclusion of the course

Module 12: Rendering using Autodesk Rendering

Total Time In-Class Required for Lesson: 45 minutes
Discuss Objectives: 5 Minutes
Demonstrate: 32 Minutes

Discussion Prompts:
• Why are renders important to a project?
• Discuss how an interactive panorama works.

Learning Objectives
• Start an Autodesk cloud rendering.
• Configure render settings.
• View the rendered image.
• Adjust settings and re-render.
• Download the rendered image.
• Configure panorama settings.
• View the interactive panorama through the render gallery.
• Download the interactive panorama to HTML.
• Configure render settings.
• View the rendered image.
• Adjust settings and re-render as a solar study.
• Adjust settings and re-render as an illuminance study.
• Download the results.
• Share rendered images on the Autodesk Rendering gallery.

Review Objectives: 5 Minutes

Assessment through quiz questions at the conclusion of the course

Lesson 13: Working with Views

Total Time In-Class Required for Lesson: 100 minutes
Discuss Objectives: 5 Minutes
Demonstrate: 62 Minutes

Discussion Prompts:
• Discuss creating drawings from views and the different types of drawings required for a project.

Learning Objectives
• Organize the project browser
 • Create custom project browser organization
• Crop plan views.
• Create and assign scope boxes.
• Utilize the underlay feature.
• Assign visibility/graphic overrides.
• Use filters to control object display.
• Create and assign view templates.
• Create dependent tiled views.
• Place matchlines and view references.
• Set up guide grids.
• Align views on sheets.
• Create and assign sheet revisions.

Review Objectives: 5 Minutes

Optional: Practice Exercise View Template: 25 Minutes

Assessment through Quiz questions at the conclusion of the course

Lesson 14: Working with Schedules

Total Time In-Class Required for Lesson: 75 minutes
Discuss Objectives: 5 Minutes
Demonstrate: 18 Minutes

Discussion Prompts:
• Discuss BIM data stored on objects.
• Why are schedules great for presenting information?

Learning Objectives
• Create a key schedule for door hardware.
• Assign key schedule parameters to doors.
• Apply filters to a schedule.
• Format schedule appearance.
• Place schedules on a sheet.

Review Objectives: 5 Minutes

Optional: Challenge Assignment Create a Key Schedule: 45 Minutes

Assessment through quiz questions at the conclusion of the course

Lesson 15: Linking Files
Total Time In-Class Required for Lesson: 105 minutes
Discuss Objectives: 5 Minutes
Demonstrate: 34 Minutes

Discussion Prompts:
• Discuss why a project may be split into multiple models.
• Discuss coordinates and setting out buildings on site.

Learning Objectives
• Link Revit and DWG files.
• Manage link options.
• Control linked file display.
• Link/import PDF and image files.
• Re-scale images to real world size.
• Snap to PDF files.
• Set up shared coordinates.
• Collaborate with shared coordinates.

Review Objectives: 5 Minutes

Optional: Practice Exercise Link Models: 25 Minutes
Challenge Assignment Use PDF and Image Files: 35 Minutes

Assessment through quiz questions at the conclusion of the course

Lesson 16: Project Management
Total Time In-Class Required for Lesson: 75 minutes
Discuss Objectives: 5 Minutes
Demonstrate: 34 Minutes

Discussion Prompts:
• Discuss why Existing and Proposed phases are required.
• Discuss why Design Options are required.
• Discuss Collaboration both with internal and external project teams.

Learning Objectives
• Manage refurbishment through phases.
• Assign existing, proposed and demolition to objects.
• Create existing, proposed and demolition views.
• Create design option sets.
• Create options.
• Work with options.
• Assign primary option.
• Compare design options.
• Assign design option visibility.
• Accept primary option.
• Enable worksharing.
• Central and local files.
• Element borrowing.
• File synchronisation.
• Create worksets.
• Assign worksets.
• Control workset visibility.
• Worksharing display.
• Review Revit warnings.
• Highlight affected objects.
• Determine severity of warnings.
• Set-up interference checking.
• Check coordination with linked models.

Review Objectives: 5 Minutes

Optional: Practice Exercise Project Coordination: 25 Minutes
Challenge Assignment Create Refurbishment: 45 Minutes

Assessment through quiz questions at the conclusion of the course