Tangrams

The grade math curriculum suggests using Tangrams and picture books when teaching 2-D shapes. (See below)

I've used these before, but this year I changed several of my resources and had a much more successful lesson.

Books

I used the books Grandfather Tang's Story and  Three Pigs, One Wolf, and Seven Magic Shapes

Pictures

I took close-up pictures of the templates used in each book, which I displayed on my SMART board.

Magnetic Tangrams

I have a set of large foam tangrams that I use to demonstrate with.  Before starting my lesson this time around, I hot-glued magnets to the back of each piece.  Now I can use them on my whiteboard as I demonstrate, which makes the demonstration visible for all students.













Both of these visuals added success to my lesson.  In the past, my students had to refer to tiny 3 cm square pictures, now the large image on the SMART board combined with my step-by-step demonstration on the whiteboard, enabled all of my students to build the shapes successfully!

Do you have other Tangram books or resources that you've found successful? 

Springtime Excusion

Last week my sisters happened upon a "chuck wagon" just west of our colony along the La Salle River where our dad used to keep his breeder geese during the summer months.
Today, my sister Sonia took our nephew Jakobi and me out to see this old time mode of transportation.  Along the way, we enjoyed various lovely springtime sights...

Dandelions - Ready for wishing upon

Puffy Cotton Clouds

 

A Pair of Canadian Honkers

Strolling through Fiddleheads

 

All of these spring wonders reminded me of  the beautiful spring song we sang at the Lehr on Sunday:

Schau', mein Geist die Frühlingszeiten,

alles will sich zubereiten,

Gott zu geben Preis und Ehr',

nimm es an zu einder Lehr',

da man alles neu sieht werden;

was für todt lag in der Erden,

das geht wiederum herfür,

grünt und wächst und blüht vor dir.

After trudging though tall grass, dried weeds and uneven terrain, we finally came upon the remains of the "chuck wagon".  Upon our arrival home, my Uncle Dave was there for a visit.  He looked at the picture and informed me that it was a "tupplepax", a double box wagon.  That seems much more reasonable, after all, our people moved to Elm River from Rosedale with trucks and panels and perhaps pick-ups, not Conestoga wagons as the early pineers did.  And... we've been involved in farming since we arrived, so a double box wagon, could have been a mode of transportation in Elm River's early days..

Remains of a Double Box Wagon

In its glory days in may have resembled this wagon. I found the image at Double Box Wagon

  

What did you do and see during your Victoria Day weekend?