An extremely ductile fiber reinforced brittle matrix composite is of great value to protective structures that may be subjected to dynamic and/or impact loading. Infrastructures such as homes, buildings, and bridges may experience such loads due to hurricane lifted objects, bombs, and other projectiles. Compared to normal concrete and fiber reinforced concrete, the invented composite has substantially improved tensile strain capacity with strain hardening behavior, several hundred times higher than that of conventional concrete and fiber reinforced concrete even when subjected to impact loading. The brittle matrix may be a hydraulic cement or an inorganic polymer. In an exemplary embodiment of the teachings, the composites are prepared by incorporating pozzolanic admixtures, lightweight filler, and fine aggregates in Engineered Cementitious Composite fresh mixture, to form the resulting mixtures, then placing the resulting mixtures into molds, and curing the resulting mixtures.