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Math - Grade 8
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Tessellation Sensation Language Arts

Math
Students will study the mathematical concepts of patterns,
Science
planes, symmetry, and translation and learn about the work of
M.C. Escher in order to create their own tessellations. Social Studies

Apps: Wixie®
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Task
4. Embrace action research
Many of the concepts you learn in a math classroom can be found in other school
subjects… including art. M.C. Escher was an illustrator known for his very precise, 5. Design a Book Cover
Lesson Plan
scientiDc, and mathematical drawings. In this activity, you will learn the mathematical
concepts of pattern and symmetry and then create your own Escher-like art in the form
r. Simple Surveys and Great Graphs
of tessellations. Your work will be displayed in your school’s own Escher-esque gallery. Lesson Plan

Engage 7. Assessing student project work

The connections between art and math are evident and numerous, yet often overlooked. s. Create a Creature
Exploring tessellations and the art of Escher is a great way to help students make these Lesson Plan

connections.
9. Informational text projects that
As students enter your classroom, ask them to look at the Koor or ceiling tiles and use build thinking and creativity
math terms to describe them. You should hear words like patterns, shapes, squares,
symmetry, mosaic, and planes.

Share a few examples of tessellations create by Escher. You might consider using
Development I, 1937 (rotation), Day and Night, 1938 (reKection), or Sky and Water I,
1938 (translation). Ask your students if they recognize the work of art and can name the
artist.

What does the artwork have in common with the Koor or ceiling tiles in the classroom?

Work as a class to develop your own deDnition of tessellation. Listen carefully for words
like shape, pattern, repetition, and symmetry.

Create

Let students know that they will learn more about art and symmetry as they create their
own tessellations.

As a class, explore the basic attributes of tessellations:

Tessellations are repeated patterns.

Tessellations do not have gaps or overlaps.
Tessellations can continue on a plane forever.

Work together to brainstorm shapes that tessellate. Squares are easy, and, in fact, the
word tessellate comes from the Greek word “tesseres,” which means “four.” A simple
tessellation is an arrangement of small squares in a checkered or mosaic pattern.
Triangles, rectangles, and parallelograms also tessellate.

Draw each shape on the board and invite students to draw lines of symmetry on each
shape and explain how symmetry allows the shapes to tessellate. Explore the four types
of symmetry in a plane – reKection, translation, rotation, and glide rotation – and how
these can be used to create tessellations.

As a class, watch the interviews with Escher on the o]cial M.C. Escher Web site. Once
the class has watched the interviews, review his symmetry prints in the picture gallery.
Students should look closely at the art and discuss the original shapes Escher used to
create the art.

You can create tessellations on paper, but it can be time consuming and tedious. The
computer makes this exercise so much easier!

It is easy to create reKection, rotation, and translation tessellations in tools like Pixie or
Wixie.

Share

Have students print their tessellations and turn your room into an Escher-esque gallery.
Invite parents, school leaders, and other classes to come in and view the images in your
gallery. Have your students act as docents to explain more about tessellations and the
works of Escher. You might even want to have them create printed handouts to share
with gallery visitors.

You could also post the student work to your Web site. In this case, a student-created
introduction to tessellations and M.C. Escher would be even more useful.

Assessment

As you activate prior knowledge by describing Koor and ceiling tiles and examining the
images created by Escher, you will have an idea of how well your students understand
symmetry and how shapes can be tessellated. As students build their tessellations, you
can evaluate their mathematical understanding of symmetry as well as visual skill using
layers and colors. You may want to put the Dnal images into your students’ portfolios
and have them record their reKections on the process.

Create your own rubric for free at rubric-maker.com

Resources
O]cial M.C. Escher Web site: http://www.mcescher.com/

Mathematical Art of M.C. Escher: http://www.mathacademy.com/pr/minitext/escher/

Tessellations: http://www.tessellations.org/

National Gallery of Art Tour http://www.nga.gov/collection/gallery/ggescher/ggescher-main1.html

Schattschneider, Doris. M.C. Escher: Visions of Symmetry ISBN: 0810943085

Seymour, Dale. Introduction to Tessellations ISBN: 0866514619

Standards

Common Core Standards for Math:

Geometry

Reason with Shapes and their attributes

8.G.A.4. Understand that a two-dimensional Dgure is similar to another if the second can be obtained from
the Drst by a sequence of rotations, reKections, translations, and dilations; given two similar two-dimensional
Dgures, describe a sequence that exhibits the similarity between them.

Consortium of National Arts Education Associations

In grades K-12 all students should:

understand the visual arts in relation to history and cultures.

make connections between visual arts and other disciplines.

ISTE NETS for Students 2016:

6. Creative Communicator
Students communicate clearly and express themselves creatively for a variety of purposes using the
platforms, tools, styles, formats and digital media appropriate to their goals. Students:

a. choose the appropriate platforms and tools for meeting the desired objectives of their creation or
communication.

b. create original works or responsibly repurpose or remix digital resources into new creations.

c. communicate complex ideas clearly and effectively by creating or using a variety of digital objects such as
visualizations, models or simulations.

d. publish or present content that customizes the message and medium for their intended audiences.

Wixie student projects

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More sites to help you Lnd success in your classroom

Wriddle EDU ToDo Rubric Maker

Write, record, and illustrate a sentence. Interactive digital worksheets for grades K-8 to use Create custom rubrics for your classroom.
in Brightspace or Canvas.

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