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15 Different Ways Tangram Puzzles Are Useful In Our Daily Life

Last Updated on January 25, 2024 by Gamesver Team and JC Franco

Color tangram puzzle in walking man
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Tangram is a fantastic educational game that fosters children’s and adults’ creativity and imagination. They are made up of seven tan pieces: five triangles of three different sizes, a square, and a parallelogram. These various components combine to form a square.

You may make limitless geometric figures by combining these parts and using your imagination. All you’ll need is a little creativity and inspiration. The only rule in this game is that you must use all seven pieces at all times. It is one of the most well-known dissection puzzles in the world, and it has been used for a variety of purposes such as entertainment, art, and education, and so on.

Playing Tangram can improve sensory and motor skills, boost critical thinking, promote problem-solving skills, and encourages inventiveness and patience. Playing Tangrams can positively impact both an adult and a developing child’s life. 

The Tangram is thought to have been devised thousands of years ago in China. But it wasn’t until the early 1800s that the puzzle gained widespread popularity, spreading from China to England, then across Europe, and the Atlantic to America. Tangrams were originally fashioned out of glass, wood, and tortoiseshell, but they are now made out of a variety of materials and can even be solved online. 

Want to know more about the uses of Tangram in daily life? We’ve rounded up 15! Read on to learn more.

1. Develop better problem-solving skills by learning geometry terms.

Tangram aids in the learning of geometric terminology and the development of greater problem-solving skills. Tangrams are not only a fun method for kids to learn about shapes, but they also inspire them to create new designs on their own.

2. Bonding without the use of a screen.

Tangrams are a great way to spend hours of “screen-free fun” with your child. They’re a great method to interact with your youngster while you’re both working on a puzzle. This adaptable “side by side” game will keep your child entertained for many hours while also providing an opportunity for meaningful engagement with younger ones.

3. Stress-Free Math.

Numbers, Sums of Problems! Tangrams are an excellent technique to strengthen your child’s mathematical skills. The traditional way of learning math can be a pain for you and your youngster. As your child re-shapes the smaller pieces into a larger picture, he’ll be learning about symmetry, spatial awareness, and geometry.

4. Versatile Puzzle.

This fantastic game can be customized to fit your specific needs. It may, for example, be a multiplayer game in which two to three youngsters collaborate to construct a shape out of the parts. You could even have each youngster play with their own set! 

What if you have two children of varying ages who are searching for a different level of difficulty in their puzzle? You could simply adapt the game for the little ones as well.

5. Improving a person’s sensory and motor skills.

Tangrams are made up of a square that is subdivided into seven smaller pieces. One parallelogram, one square, and five triangles make up these smaller pieces. All of these are intended to make a specific pattern. Therefore, playing this game can help improve a person’s sensory and motor skills.

6. Boost Critical Thinking Skills.

You’re training your brain in new ways and learning to be imaginative as you go if you have to figure out a variety of ways to make different forms. Your child will graduate to more complicated pictures as they play with tangrams. 

Your kid will constantly be putting new shapes together and asking herself if the parts will fit together or if she should move a piece around. This allows her to think rationally and make sensible decisions based on previous experiences. As a result, she’s improving his critical thinking abilities.

Smart wunderkind
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7. Boost Problem Solving Skills.

While your child is attempting to construct shapes in the Tangram, he is conversing with himself within. He begins to see the obstacles that are limiting him from generating a specific shape and examines alternative approaches to overcome the obstacle. He can hone his problem-solving talents if he does it often enough.

8. It Build Intellectual Capacities.

The game helps players develop their abilities to think, study, plan, and execute with discipline. They understand that making errors is a part of life and an opportunity to grow physically and mentally. They recognize that failing at something is a crucial step toward mastering it later.

9. It Helps To Pay Attention and Have concentration.

To accomplish a task, you must pay attention and concentrate, which is especially crucial while trying new activities. Some kids have problems focusing on an activity for long periods. This could be caused by worry, frustration, or sensory sensitivity. Tangram can assist your kid in paying attention and identifying probable reasons and remedies.

10. Visual Memory.

It allows you to remember or recall information such as activities, sights, or words that you’ve seen before.

The model – or template – must be observed and then replicated by the children. It improves visual memorization in this way.

11. Visual perception.

Visual perception can be defined as the process of interpreting and distinguishing certain visual inputs from others. It provides the ability to perceive the surroundings utilizing visible spectrum light reflected by the environment’s objects.

12. Encourages the ability for children to discover things on their own.

Many of us are not born with the ability to learn fast. Personality does play a role in a child’s attitude toward education and studying, but those who are good students or learners had to acquire that skill at some point. More importantly, any student who has the basic ability and the correct desire can become an excellent learner with the help of a game.

13. Develops the ability to reflect and reason to come up with a solution to a particular problem.

Understanding how people build critical competencies requires an understanding of learning processes and learning transfer. Because almost no one is born with the ability to perform properly as an adult in society, learning is essential.

Playing with Tangrams can promote clear, rational, and introspective thinking. And also develop the ability to think and come up with a solution to a problem.

14. Encourages inventiveness and patience.

Patience can be defined as the ability to stay calm while waiting for a desired or needed outcome, whereas creativity is the attribute of being clever, original, and inventive.

Every day, Tangram Puzzles taught us to be patient and be bright, innovative, and inventive.

Clever kid with light bulb helmet
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15. Serve as a valuable educational resource as well as a source of enjoyment.

The game is both a learning tool for kids and a never-ending source of amusement for people of all ages. They are a simple and inexpensive method to have fun while also strengthening your brain. This classic game will undoubtedly be one of the most popular puzzles for future generations.

All things considered

Tangrams are not only a fun method for kids to learn about geometric shapes, but they also inspire them to create their designs. This is critical because half of the struggle to reach them has been won if the youngster is interested. Children discover that geometric forms may be used to create everyday objects such as dogs, cats, and other animals. 

The nice thing about tangrams is that kids can find their own way of making an animal, which is OK because nothing is “fixed in stone” with tangrams. This not only teaches youngsters to think in new ways, but it also pushes them to take risks since they know there isn’t just one right way to accomplish things.

Making Tangram forms can be highly frustrating for some students, especially if they are used to doing math by following rules and procedures. You can help these pupils feel less frustrated by giving them some hints. 

You could, for example, lay down the first piece or draw lines on an outline to demonstrate where parts should go. With that in mind, it is critical to establish precisely the correct level of difficulty so that children can enjoy each Tangram investigation.

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This article was co-authored by our team of in-house and freelance writers, and reviewed by our editors, who enjoy sharing their knowledge about their favorite games with others!

JC Franco
Editor | + posts

JC Franco serves as a New York-based editor for Gamesver. His interest for board games centers around chess, a pursuit he began in elementary school at the age of 9. Holding a Bachelor’s degree in Business from Mercyhurst University, JC brings a blend of business acumen and creative insight to his role. Beyond his editorial endeavors, he is a certified USPTA professional, imparting his knowledge in tennis to enthusiasts across the New York City Metropolitan area.