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tangram

tangram

1 8.2
A Chinese square puzzle with seven flat pieces used to make different shapes
  • noun
  • /ˈtæŋɡræm/
: tangram
  • In her spare time, she loves to work on a tangram, arranging the pieces into different shapes.

Examples

  • Boys will excel at tangrams, puzzles, and using mathematics to build.

    Academic text (2008)
  • For example, while students are playing the tangram app at the iPad station, students who are waiting for a turn can be given actual tangrams.

    Academic text (2013)
  • And then you also get little puzzle pieces for the Tangram game.

  • The title of this game quickly becomes literal, as players try to move tangram pieces around a board into various places.

    Blog text (23)
  • For example, while students are playing the tangram app at the iPad station, students who are waiting for a turn can be given actual tangrams.

    Academic text (2013)
  • The remaining funds allocated for professional development activities were spent on classroom equipment (file cabinet, calculator, art supplies, tangrams).

    Academic text (1994)
  • Teachers can use pattern blocks, attribute blocks, or tangrams to help students master more difficult skills, too, by creating and taking a picture of a design and then having students recreate the pictured image.

    Academic text (2013)
  • Pattern blocks or tangrams, generally used to have students match the appropriate piece to a picture (K-Grade 1 Geometry CCSS), can be used in more challenging ways, such as by providing students with more blocks than needed for a template.

    Academic text (2013)
  • The children played with a tangram, creating colorful designs by fitting the geometric pieces together.

  • After learning about tangrams in class, they excitedly showcased their designs at the school fair.

Synonyms

puzzle
vstangram
474 1.9

A game or problem that tests how well you think

is a Chinese set of seven flat pieces cut from a square to form shapes

Surface Forms

tangram singular
tangrams plural

Etymology

The word tangram probably comes from two parts: tang meaning 'Chinese' and -gram meaning 'drawing', as in diagram. One popular way to remember it is to think of a tangram as a little 'Chinese drawing' you make by putting seven flat pieces together to form different shapes.