Teachers' Notes
This activity, written to comply with the NCTM Standards, and to support the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) uses a fun mathematical puzzle to provide a base for investigation and discovery. It can be used in geometry or in Algebra I to provide data for curve fitting. An online Tetris game can be used to create interest and give experience in rotations, reflections, and translations. Even though I don't have any data to back it up, I know from personal experience that playing Tetris builds intuition about transformations.Copyright 1998-2004 Cynthia LaniusGrade Levels: 5-10
Procedures: Activities are written to be done independently by students or with guidance from the teacher.
Mathematics Topics: Assigning variables, making predictions, writing formulas, graphing, perimeter, rotations, reflections
Connecting Mathematics: Connects geometry and algebra (curve-fitting)
Materials and media: Square grid paper, triangle grid paper, Internet connection
Suggested Assessment: Evaluate student answers to Challenge Problems.
Texas Curriculum Documentation:
- Algebra I TEKS 111.32 d 3
- Geometry TEKS 111.34 b 3D
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lanius@math.rice.edu
URL http://math.rice.edu/~lanius/Lessons/Polys/polyt.html