This activity needs a good supply of recycled paper and scissors for each person.
Can you make the free standing model above using only scissors and paper? It will require some thought and planning. It may also take some 'trial and improvement' so ensure you are using recycled paper.
Using a similar method as was used for the toast rack above, can you construct an Olympic winners' podium?
Use the net provided here to construct a dodecahedron with this year's calendar printed on it, to display on your desk.
A desk Cube Calendar can be made using two cubes to show the day of the month.
With just three folds it is possible to transforman A4 sheet of paper into a beautiful kite. You can find the step by step instructions on our Kite Maths page.
We have a whole section on the mathematics of kites and how they make great classroom displays.
After practising with recycled paper the kite activity can be enhanced by using coloured A3, A4, A5 and A6 sized paper.
The Christmas tree below was made from one green sheet of A4 paper and then mounted on a red sheet of paper. Can you work out what cutting was required?
A nice investigation can be developed around the idea of counting the number of ways a sheet of paper can be folded. There are many different cases to be considered depending on the number and position of the folds.
There are eight ways to fold a 2x2 map along its creases:
The image above is from Robert Dickau, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Christmas activities make those December Maths lessons interesting, exciting and relevant. If students have access to computers there are some online activities to keep them engaged such as Christmas Ornaments and Christmas Light Up.
Arrange the coloured lights to create a balanced pattern where the total of each colour matches the target numbers. So far this activity has been accessed 5901 times and 328 Transum Trophies have been awarded for completing it.
Try some of the other areas of the Transum Maths website:
Comment recorded on the 26 March 'Starter of the Day' page by Julie Reakes, The English College, Dubai:
"It's great to have a starter that's timed and focuses the attention of everyone fully. I told them in advance I would do 10 then record their percentages."
Believe it or not it is possible to fold a pentagon from a piece of A4 size paper.
You can also tie a pentagon-shaped knot in a strip of paper.
Do you have any comments? It is always useful to receive feedback and helps make this free resource even more useful for those learning Mathematics anywhere in the world. Click here to enter your comments.
