1. Totally Tangrams
Kelly Hines
McLeansville Elementary
School
kellyhines1@gmail.com
2. Common Core Connection
K: Identify and describe shapes; Analyze,
compare, create, and compose shapes.
1, 2 & 3: Reason with shapes and their
attributes.
4: Draw and identify lines and angles, and
classify shapes by properties of their lines
and angles.
5: Classify two-dimensional figures into
categories based on their properties.
3. Back in the day…
Funday
Spatial Reasoning
Mathematical story telling
…Moving Forward
Justification
through Construction
Mathematical & Spatial Reasoning
4. Modeling for You
It’syour turn to the be the student.
You will receive these presentation slides if
you want to use this lesson with your
students, so sit back and participate!
If you are going to write
anything, track the geometry
terms that we use and apply.
6. Step Two
Make your paper into a square. Before you cut,
describe how you are positive, without a ruler, that
you have a square.
7. Step Three
Make your square into two congruent, right
triangles.
How are these two triangles related to one another?
How else could you classify them?
8. Step Four
Divide one of those triangles into two right,
congruent triangles.
How do these two triangles relate to one another?
How do they relate to the original triangle?
How do they relate to the square you started with?
Put the two smaller triangles to the side.
9. Step Five
Find the midpoint of the hypotenuse of the larger
triangle.
Fold the opposite vertex to meet that point.
What two shapes do you have?
How would you describe them?
How do they relate to one another?
Set aside the third triangle.
10. Step Six
Close the corner of the trapezoid.
Cut off the corner along the trapezoid edge.
Cut the fold you made.
Describe the shapes you’ve made.
How do they relate to one another?
How would you classify each one?
Which ones can go together? Why?
14. Connect to Reading
Read Grandfather Tang’s Story
• Students will create shapes in story
• Make cultural connections
• How does the use of tangrams enhance
the story that Grandfather tells?
Other literature connections:
http://www.mathwire.com/geometry/tangrams.html
15. Connect to Writing
• Have each student write all of the attributes of
each piece on that piece.
• Look for key terms for them to use.
• Eliminate a word and make them write
descriptions. For example, have them describe
each piece but “outlaw” the words “triangle”
and “quadrilateral.”
• Write your own story that you can create
tangram characters for.
16. Connect to More Math
• Use rulers and protractors to analyze relationships
among the pieces more.
• Have students create 3 different scaled versions
of the tangrams. Describe the relationships of the
pieces to one another, as well as analyze the
process for making it.
• Don’t give the students any of the steps I gave
you, and make them figure it out!
