HOT Math ! plato3_small.jpg (2069 bytes)

Task: Platonic solids

Main task: build the five platonic solids and discover some properties by filling the table:

solid # edges # sides # corners

cube
tetrahedron
octahedron
icosahedron
dodecahedron

     

Find Euler's formula:

#edges +  ?  =  #sides + #corners

plato1.jpg (99511 bytes)

 

Higher order tasks (HOTs)
1. Find out which solids can fill space.
2. Find out how a tetrahedron can fit completely inside a cube and make a sketch of it.

plato4.jpg (82143 bytes)

Required equipment:
scissors, glue, cut-outs of the solids:

Additional remarks from classroom experience:
Folding will be neater if the lines are grooved with a scissor side along a ruler.
Classroom discipline can be established by students taking turns in assembling all scraps.

Assessment criteria:
- quality of solids (neat work)
- correct formula
- wording on how the formula was found


What can be learnt:

  • terminology of mathematical objects
  • spatial skills
  • making tables
  • finding rules

plato2.jpg (100705 bytes)

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