Next, I challenged my kids to make their own square with a 7 piece set of puzzle pieces. Most students were saying they would have the puzzle completed in 2-3 minutes. It didn't take long, however, before everyone realized the puzzle was going to be a challenge.
Eventually, some of the kids began to put the puzzle together correctly. Then, after a couple of hints, everyone began to get the hang of it :)
After the "square" challenge, I handed out folders of tangram puzzles I had collected over the years. I had laminated each set of puzzles and had a folder and set of tangrams for each student. The kids spent time building tangram puzzles within an outline.
Finally, on Day 1, my students practiced making tangram puzzles without the outlines. They looked at a smaller version of the completed version of the puzzle and put it together on their desk.
It was a fun activity and the kids really enjoyed the puzzles.
