Abstract: The concept of “the unity of leaning and doing” is deeply rooted in the educational world, but it is not easy to put it into practice earnestly. After nine years of effort, with the innovative practical course of the “Structural Model Design and Fabrication” developed by Shanghai Jiaotong University, the good integration of ”learning and doing” is preliminarily realized, with a remarkable effect. The present paper gives a summary of the course with some food for thought, hoping to provide a useful reference for the related engineering teaching reform in China.