Transcript Tangrams: Seven Magic Shapes

Tangrams: Seven Magic
Shapes
A study by Kelly Coombs, Deb
Penna, and Beth Schimschock
A Little History
 Originated in China
 Its invention is unrecorded in history.
 The word “tangram” may have come from the Tanka people who
were traders who played this puzzle and past it on via sailors.
 The word might come from an obscure English word “tramgram”
which means puzzle or trinket.
 Became popular during the 19th century in Europe and America.
More History
 Fancy tangram sets
made of ivory, jade,
and other fine
materials soon
appeared.
 Others were made
from fired clay, or
wood.
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10
0
East
West
North
1st 2nd 3rd 4th
Qtr Qtr Qtr Qtr
Tangrams are puzzles made
of:
Seven shapes
 5 triangles
 1 square
 1 parallelogram
The Great Tangram HOAX!
 1903 - The Eighth
 Later this was found
Book of Tan was
written by Sam Loyd
 Loyd convinced
people that the
game was invented
by the God Tan
4,000 years ago.
to be a colossal
hoax.
 However Loyd
greatly profited from
his deceit.
Tangrams Today!
 These challenging
puzzles continue to
entertain and
frustrate.
 Attracts people of
varied interests quilters, puzzle
fanatics, storytellers
and more.
Tangram Trivia
 Lewis Carroll was
reputed to have
been a huge fan of
tangrams. He was
believed to possess
a Chinese book
made of tissue
paper with 323
tangram designs.
 Edgar Allan Poe and
Napoleon were also
known to be huge
fans.
Classroom Uses
 Used to reinforce
geometry and ratios.
 Teach basic math in
an interesting
manner.
 Integrate literature in
your classroom.
 Wonderful online
interactive puzzles.
Tangram Books for Classroom
Use
 Grandfather Tang’s Story by Ann Tompert
 Presto Chango: Storytelling Class Book Making and
Problem Solving With Tangrams by Anne Linehan
 The Adventures of the Beautiful Princess in Triangle
Land by Gregory Hartswick
 Three Pigs, One Wolf, and Seven Magic Shapes by
Grace Maccarone
 Magic Window story
Technology - Time to Explore
 http://www.kidscom.com/games/tangram/tang
ram.html
 http://www.tangram.i-p.com/
 http://cs.bmcc.cc.or.us/mth213/Labs/online%
20tangrams.htm
 http://standards.nctm.org/document/eexampl
es/chap4/4.4/part2.htm
More Technology
http://www.logicville.com/tangram.htm
http://pbskids.org/cyberchase/games/ar
ea/tangram.html
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/craft
s/chinesenewyear/tangram/