What we do?
We provide specially produced Tetragami cardstock and also training sessions for students, teachers, and parents. To learn more about Tetragami and see our instructional videos, visit our website.
Why we do it?
We agree with the Lego Foundation that building and play should be important aspects of education. Tetragami can be a fun, creative, open-ended part of that strategy!
Tetragami implementation?
Although we have done workshops strictly for teachers in the past the more productive strategy we are focusing on now is to train online teams of students along with one adult sponsor to be the Tetragami experts at their schools.
We are currently doing online instruction with students and their teacher in Taiwan during their school day and we will soon be working with 8-12 year olds in New Delhi, India. We will be running online weekly training sessions for 10 weeks with these student leaders along with their support teacher who will then be able to share what they have learned either in the context of a student club or as part of a Tetragami Design Center in the classroom. This is meant to supplement and enrich the regular curriculum, not to replace it.
Expansion ideas?
We hope to establish Tetragami Teams in at least ten school sites during the coming year. We are looking for a $10,000 grant to achieve this goal, $500 to ship supplies and $500 for the ten training sessions for each Tetragami Team. Once we have worked out the bugs in this fairly simple outreach/expansion model we should be able to ramp this up and organize 100 teams over the next three years.
Teacher, Student and Parent Testimonials
"There are so many cool things about Tetragami. The dye cut paper makes it super easy for students to fold and create polyhedrons and combine them to make amazing models. I had a class of 5-7 year-old students so interested in folding, designing and naming their own creations that they wanted to make a poster to share it with other students. They were able to describe and name shapes based on geometric vocabulary as they described their creations. Tetragami’s use of simple materials makes it a fun, hands-on and accessible activity for all students with the flexibility of design and imagination. The limit is only in how much paper and glue you have along with your imagination.I work at a family partnership program for homeschool students in Bellingham, Washington and attended a workshop last summer on Tetragami bringing along my two children. Peter invited my kids to participate and now we are all hooked on making cool creations. I am so thankful that Peter Hubbard and his daughter Iris have selflessly shared their skills with me, my students and families. We have definitely benefitted with the creative and innovative ideas they bring to the table." - Marci Bass,Family Partnership Program Teacher
"The third-grade students of Taiwan have been taking Tetragami online lessons since April 2020. They used i-pads to communicate with Ms. Hubbard from a long distance. From my perspective as a Taiwanese art teacher, I think these projects enhance students' ability of logic, space, and also creativity. Once they understand the methods, they can turn Tetragami into anything they want and even use it to create a new system. The students of the class enjoyed Tetragami as an advanced form of LEGO and they processed faster than when they first saw it. It is really amazing material." -Ann, Wenchang Elementary Teacher, and Administrator, Taipei, Taiwan
"I like Tetragami because it not only looks 3 dimensional but it has layers and layers of dimensions, giving me a way to express my free will that some adults don’t allow." -Lucca, Tetragami Student
"It expresses creativity in a very unique, fun and focused way. Plus it’s just fun!!" -Eden, Tetragami Student
"There are no limits to Tetragami!" - Jasper, Tetragami Student
"My son loves math, working with his hands and being creative. Rarely do I find an activity that combines all three of these things - and more! The projects were engaging, interesting and challenging to him. Aside from the math component, Tetragami is excellent for strengthening fine motor and spatial skills as well as perseverance. My son has also been inspired to create his own Tetragami projects. Peter and Iris are amazingly patient, flexible and knowledgable. Tetragami is a unique, educational and fun activity!" -Sarah Bogosian, Tetragami Parent
"We have found Tetragami has offered our child a creative art form that is challenging and pushes her to think a project through but is also very fun. It provides her with the ability to create pieces that are unique and at any scale she is interested in creating. I believe the hidden nature of the mathematical element of Tetragami is advantageous to a child even though it isn't obvious to them. Thank you for providing this opportunity for our child." -Shannon Taysi, Tetragami Parent
"I like Tetragami for my son Lucca because it’s a hands on creative building process. It allows him to continue the hands on learning that was so crucial for his development as a young child and brings in more complex spacial and building skills." -Vanessa Previsic, Tetragami Parent
"Our 10-year-old son loves Tetragami. It is creative, adaptable, mathematic and one can make it as easy or as challenging as one wants. He is an even-keeled kid, and it’s rare to get a rise out of him, but when we asked if he wanted to take the Tetragami online courses, he lit up and said YES!" -Jodie Beatty, Tetragami Parent
