Mrs. Skinner's math class used pentominoes to do problem solving. Numerous manipulative activities encourage all children to actively explore such geometric and spatial concepts as transformations, congruence, symmetry, area and perimeter. The children are challenged to experiment with these mathematical concepts and to communicate their under- standing of the concepts both individually and cooperatively.
Marcus Handy says, "I like the way I can move the pento-
minoes around to make different shapes."
Jaesang Lee says, "It is fun to graph the pentominoes."
"Working with pento- minoes is fun because I like measuring the different shapes I make," says Shaunte White.
"I like the take home and share activities because I like to do them with my brother and sister," says Kneisha Schoolfield.
"It is fun to see how many different pentominoes I can use to cover the square," says Demarics Banks.
"I love playing with pentominoes," says Ashia Johnson.
Reference: Problem Solving With Pentominoes (Grades 1-4 Activity Book) by Alison Abrohms. Publisher - Learning Resources LER414
Patricia A. Weeg