Procedures for Teaching Variational Formulation and Finite Element Approximation of Mechanical Problems applied to the Kirchho Plate Model

Traditionally, engineering students have been taught Mechanics of Solids and Strength of Materials through a technical theory based on one-dimensional models of bars and beams. Most of textbooks are organized in chapters which present the main concepts of mechanics (equilibrium, strain, stress, etc) for specic problems with no relation to the general case. In addition, the features of the mechanical models of beam and bar are discussed in many chapters and students do not have an overall view of these models. Due to the multidisciplinary characteristic of the real engineering problems and the intensive use of computers to simulate their behaviour, it is very important to present the formulation and approxi-mation of mechanical models using procedures which make clear all the relevant aspects, hyphoteses and limitations. This paper presents two step-by-step procedures for the variational formulation and nite element approximation of mechanical models which are applied to the Kirchho plate model. Keywords