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A PhD grant for a research on children's furniture brought the opportunity of teaching in the Design degree of Lisbon's School of Architecture of the University of Lisbon. On the 2nd year, in particular, the students got in touch with designing ceramics, learning its methods and technologies, in a hands-on and very practical stage of the degree. This paper reports a teaching/learning process in which a child-friendly tile project in ceramics was developed and put to practice, working side-by-side with the students, monitoring them, prototyping ceramic coatings and other objects, while giving them the opportunity to follow the tile project and share their own experience and practical understanding of the material's potentiality. It was observed that this process allowed an enriched interaction between teacher and students, in which both subjects teach and learn, sharing knowledge and experience. Strengthening ties with motivation and enthusiasm, while watching the projects grow and develop, within a context of an applied practical knowledge in the academy, also establishing bridges with an industrial professional practice. A study based in questioning was made with university students, female and male, searching for their reactions at a hands-on design teacher who is also a student, their reactions to projects by teachers connecting the academy with professional practice and the impact of the interaction on their projects and motivation to pursue the Design degree. The results were positive and reflect the importance of design practice and experience sharing in the teaching and learning process.

Keywords:

Product Design, Design for Children, Ceramics, Design Practice, Design Teaching