Tangram

Gubau Llibre, Lia

By Lia 3/24/2014 7 - Ms. Nestor

Friday, April 4, 2014 2:28:31 PM Pacic Daylight Time

70:56:81:b0:04:d7

Tangrams can be arranged into many di!erent shapes, such as a

person or a dog. You can put together an innite number of combinations, and since the 1800s, there has been over 6500 di!erent shapes documented. Tangram is a game that was invented in China. The exact date is not known but it was possibly invented during the Song dynasty between 960 1279. Legend says it was created by a god named Tan, and that is were the name Tangram came from. The game was later carried to Europe by trading over ships in the early 19th century. How does Tangram relate to geometry? ! Tangram is almost all geometry. In fact, all the seven tans (the seven pieces) are some kind of geometrical shape. Two of the tans are 2 big right triangles and there is also one medium right triangle. Two other shapes are 2 small right triangles and one square. The last shape is a parallelogram. These tans are used to make a specic shapes with only the silhouette given. The rules say that the tans may not overlap and all of them must to be used. ! Geometry is the study of shapes and properties of space. This is what Tangram is all about. Research shows that early experiences with tangrams, does not only help children develop positive attitudes towards studying geometry. It also enhances kidss shape identication and classication. The kids that have played tangram when young are most likely to understand geometry. Using triangles, squares, and other geometrical gures to make a specic shape helps you understand a lot about property of space and shapes. ! Tangram is a game where you have to be good at having imagination. For example, to make a rabbit you would need to be able to see the rabbit without having much detail. It is actually said that to play tangram you need to use three things. The rst one is geometrical knowledge because you need to know all the shapes to move them

Gubau Llibre, Lia

Friday, April 4, 2014 2:28:31 PM Pacic Daylight Time

70:56:81:b0:04:d7

around. The other thing you need is reasoning or logic. To do math and geometry you also need reasoning to gure out problems and solve them. And last but not least you need geometrical imagination to imagine a shape before making it. ! How does Tangram relate to geometry? Tangram relates to geometry in many ways. One of them is geometrical shapes. The three shapes used are right triangles, a square and a parallelogram. It also relates to geometry because you need geometrical knowledge, reasoning and geometrical imagination to play tangram. These are things that you also need to know to do geometry. Another way that tangram relates to geometry is by having to use geometry strategies to play tangram. Overall, tangram and geometry have a lot in common.

Gubau Llibre, Lia

Friday, April 4, 2014 2:28:31 PM Pacic Daylight Time

70:56:81:b0:04:d7

Works Cited

Eastman, Susan. "Geometry." Geometry. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Mar. 2014. "History of the Tangram." History of the Tangram. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Mar. 2014. Rynhart, Pavani. "Learning Geometry Using Tangrams." Proactive Play. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Mar. 2014. "Tangram." Princeton University. N.p., n.d. Web. 24 Mar. 2014. "Tangram." Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 24 Mar. 2014. Web. 24 Mar. 2014. "Enhancing Children's Spatial Sense Using Tangrams." - Free Online Library. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Mar. 2014.

Gubau Llibre, Lia

Friday, April 4, 2014 2:28:31 PM Pacic Daylight Time

70:56:81:b0:04:d7