Tangrams

While reading Grandfather Tang's Story by Ann Tompert, students will be using tangrams to create the animals that the fox fairies are turning themselves into in this story.

A lesson plan for grade 3 Mathematics

By Dawn Coleman

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Learning outcomes

Students will:

• create different shapes/animals using the tangram pieces.
• use their listening skills to determine what animal the fox fairies will be next using clues from the reading.

Teacher planning

Time required for lesson

1 hour

Materials/resources

• Grandfather Tang’s Story by Ann Tompert
• Transparencies of each animal shown in the story (attached)
• Copies (per partner) of each animal in the order presented in this literature book
• Set of tangrams per partner

Technology resources

Overhead needed to show transparencies

Pre-activities

Students should be able to identify all 7 tangram pieces, know congruent and similiar pieces, and have had “play” time with tangrams creating different shapes. Students should also be able to make a square with all 7 pieces.

Activities

1. Give students a few minutes of “play” time and have them put the 7 pieces in a perfect square.
2. Teacher must have transparencies in the order of the animals that were presented in the book. Partner sheets should also be in the same order if stack is upside down. All of these are included as attachments.
3. Pass out partner sheets upside down so students can’t see the pictures. Attachments for these are the same as those used by the teacher.
4. Begin reading Grandfather Tang’s Story aloud to the class. As the animals are introduced in the story, show the transparency on the overhead and have students turn over the top sheet and put their tangrams in the correct spaces to create the animal.
5. As you are reading the story the students can try to figure out the next animal by using the clues given in the reading.
6. When the story is finished, review the fox fairies adventures using the transparencies.
7. Give students a few more minutes to try making other animals that the fox fairies could have been.

Extension

Assessment

Assessment is done through the teacher’s eyes. The teacher must look for correct placement of the tangrams in the animal pictures. Peer assessment can also be done. Did your partner use the tangrams appropriately?

Supplemental information

The teacher should be very comfortable using the tangrams his/herself. There are many other tangram-related stories that can be used before or after this activity.
Ex. Tangram Magician by Lisa Campbell (ISBN: 0810938510)

Other tangram books are available and can be used in conjunction with this lesson.)

Related websites

N/A

Comments

Tangrams are great tools for geometry, area, perimeter, and fractions. This is a fun activity to give students at the beginning of the year so tangrams can brought out again throughout the year.