Li's Tangram Animals

Li's Tangram Animals

It was the first day of school, and Li stood alone, missing his home in China. Everywhere there was shouting and laughter in a language Li worked hard to understand. When the bell rang, Li hung up his backpack and placed the gift his father had sent on his teacher's desk.

" We're so happy you're in our class, Li, " said Miss Hess, opening her present. It was a tangram puzzle Li's father had made, along with tangram puzzle cards. “ What a lovely gift! " said Miss Hess. " Would you like to tell the children about the tangram puzzle?" Li looked down at the floor. “ That's okay, Li, " said Miss Hess. “ Josh, why don't you pick a shape from the puzzle and describe it to the class?"

Josh picked up the five triangles. " This shape has three sides and is called a triangle. There are two small, one medium, and two large triangles in the puzzle. " Miss Hess held up another shape. “ What makes this one a square?" Becka answered, " It has four sides that are the same length. "

The last shape was trickier. " This shape has two pairs of opposite sides that are parallel. The word parallel means two lines that run side by side and are an equal distance apart, " said Miss Hess. " Like railroad tracks?" asked Sam. " That's right, " said Miss Hess. " It's called a parallelogram. "

Miss Hess put the tangram puzzle and the cards on a table next to Li's desk. During free time, Li watched as kids covered tangram pieces with other pieces. Two small triangles covered the square exactly. Two small triangles and a square covered the parallelogram.