Hands-On STEAM Lessons

In a lesson that was part ice-breaker, part team-building exercise, and part STEAM activity, St. Viator Middle School Students took their learning out to our school yard. Call it "Tangram Tuesday" for fun, the Middle School teachers built teams from the combined 6th, 7th, and 8th grade rosters, then assigned each team a set of our giant tangrams and a build packet.

Teams worked the packet together, with the builds getting progressively more challenging.

Tangrams sets start with a square, then divide that into seven geometric pieces: 5 triangles (of various sizes), one parallelogram, and one square. Students work the two-dimensional pieces to complete a puzzle (often a figure or image) without overlap or gaps. Ideally, the teams stay calm and work carefully to create the specific image.

Is that a cobra? Maybe a barn? Sometimes its a matter of perspective. No matter the image, students dusted off their their spatial reasoning, remembered their geometry readiness, recognized some patterns, and solved some challenges...essentially unpacking the skills they put to rest over the summer. The teachers may have been aiming for "positive mathematical mindset and persistence", but I think the Middle School Eagles just enjoyed a hands-on lesson in the schoolyard on a beautiful afternoon.

Thank you, Mrs. Gamino (Middle School Math) for sharing the great pictures! And thank you to the Middle School Teaching team for sharing the fun lesson.

Are you still looking for a school seat for the 2026-2027 school year? Do you like the idea of a hands-on approach to learning? Contact us if you would like to hear more about the creative ways that St. Viator Teachers engage their students: (773) 545-2173.

We are Peace Builders; We are Eagles; We are St. Viator!