Check out the videos to the left, Hexaflexagons and Hexaglexgons 2.
These are my absolute FAVORITE math lessons to do with some of my older students.
As outlined in the Common Core Standards, students are required to understand that geometric figures can be analyzed and classified based on their properties, such as having parallel sides, perpendicular sides, particular angle measures, and symmetry.’ This area of focus requires students to deepen their understanding of two dimensional objects and their properties through building, drawing, and analyzing two dimensional shapes – translated for the day’s lesson: mathematical origami introduced through social media technology (CCSS, 4.G).
If it works for your academic timeline - capitalize on National Hexaflexagon Month! (October)
I was privileged enough to watch this lesson in person in a fourth grade classroom to kick-off the geometry unit. During an afternoon math lesson, the students watched the first of the two video series. Students had pre-traced and cut strips to properly fold their hexaflexagon. They were instructed to watch the entire video before folding. Using the Elmo projector, the classroom teacher folded her strip into a flexible and colorful hexaflexagon as the students followed at their desks.
This lesson was a success in three key ways: student engagement, skills and standards application, and social learning. Students were excited to consider their math class a kickoff party and the creativity of the lesson drew them in from the beginning. Students were applying geometric properties and concepts to their hexaflexagon folding and were utilizing proper mathematical language. The folding proved to be a challenging and tedious task. If one fold of the shape was off, the flexagon would not work. I was able to assist students at their desks while the classroom teacher provided class wide assistance with the Elmo. However, there were still students who became frustrated. I decided to take advantage of the frustration as a ‘natural part of the process,’ and the few students who succeeded understood the mystery behind the theory, not just the art lesson, and were fascinated. I tried to use these students who had succeeded to remodel their process for peers who were struggling, partnering students of different levels to work collaboratively. Despite the slight frustration, students insisted on bringing their hexaflexagons to recess, excited to share their mathematical magic with their friends.
