Craft: Tangrams

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tangramA tangram is an ancient Chinese shape puzzle, using 7 pieces made out of three shapes. The earliest known Chinese book about tangrams is dated 1813 but the puzzle was very old by then. The puzzle interests the math inclined with the geometry and ratios of the pieces. You find them used in classrooms around the world to teach basic math ideas in an interesting way. The classic rules are as follows: You must use all seven tans, they must lay flat, they must touch and none may overlap.

Make a tangram set:

Supplies:

  • 4” square piece of fun foam (thicker is better). Have the lines drawn on them already so the girls just cut them out. They all would get their own set to take home (bring baggies!)
  • Scissors

Show the girls some puzzles and see if they can figure them out. (note: I printed samples with solutions from http://ideas.gstboces.org/programs/tangrams/printables.cfm)