Tangrams, Pentacubes & Pentonimoes

The Tangrams Project

DIME practical geometry Geoff Giles
A traditional Tangram set consists of seven pieces cut in the traditional way from a square and from these pieces thousands of different shapes and images can be created. However, it is also possible to divide the square into five pieces and thus to approach the subject in a similar but simpler way. By including both of these approaches, this Tangrams Project offers a novel introduction to shape recognition and to simple geometry. One innovation is to base the work on 'dotty' paper. Not only does this reduce the number of options to more manageable proportions but means that any child is able to draw and record the shapes without difficulty. The project pack includes four sets of each type of tangram made out of brightly coloured Plastazote together with a book of blackline masters, called 'Tangram Teasers'. The answers to the questions are printed in pale blue ink, so they are available for the teacher to see, but disappear from the photocopied worksheets which are to be handed out.
DIME Tangram Project Pack £8.20(+ VAT)

Addional Tangram Materials

DIME 5 piece Tangrams - Pack of four £2.60 (+ VAT) DIME 7 piece Tangrams - Pack of four £2.60 (+ VAT)


DIME Tangram Teasers

Pentacube Puzzle Project

Pentacubes are made from five cubes joined together and as there are 8 differently shaped pieces the puzzles are more demanding. Children learn to build from a plan, recognise shapes from different points of view and finally how to work from plans and diagrams which are not full size. The project consists of a set of pentacubes and an 80 page book of blackline masters.
Pentacube Masters £6.95 (+VAT)
Box of Pentacubes £8.20 (+VAT)

Pentacubes

A hardwood set of twelve pieces comprising all the possible single layer combinations of five connected cubes, usually known as pentominoes. It provides an enormous range of two and three-dimensional puzzling.
£6.70 (+ VAT)

Tangrams Puzzle

This ancient Chinese puzzle is the opposite of a modern jig-saw. For the aim is not to find the one correct position for each piece, but to generate as many interesting shapes as possible from them. Made in hardwood and with a leaflet which illustrates just 50 possible shapes as a starter.
£6.15 (+ VAT)

Pentominoes

0 906212 57 X Jon Millington
If you take five squares of the same size and join them edge to edge, the resulting shape is called a Pentomino. There are 12 different pentominoes and the number of patterns you can make with them is very large. This book shows some of the possibilities, poses some problems and suggests fruitful lines of investigation. Complete with sets of pentominoes in two colours to cut out and an envelope in which to keep them.
£3.50

Tangrams

0 906212 56 1 Jon Millington
This colourful book deals in a fresh way with a puzzle which is very old indeed, probably of Chinese origin. A square is cut into 7 pieces and with them you have to construct a large variety of different images and patterns. Complete with sets of tangrams in two colours to cut out, and an envelope in which to keep them.
£3.50

Masters £3.20 (+ VAT)