A few years ago I created a couple of tarsia puzzles for use in helping students learn basic cooking tools and measuring abbreviations and equivalents. I had always meant to create more puzzles. Well, I finally got a new Tarsia Puzzles: Sewing Tools created! Be sure to check it out along with the additional sewing resources available.  Please let me know if you have ideas for additional tarsia puzzles and I’ll see what I can do.

Notes & Directions

• Implementing tarsia puzzles into your lessons is a fun, hands-on way for students to review and practice. They help promote communication, collaboration and even critical thinking skills.
• The beauty is that they can be used as an introductory activity to see what students know or they can also be used as a review activity after teaching a concept. Finally, they can be used as an assessment for students to individually complete, tape together and submit for a grade.
• The only down side to tarsia puzzles is that you have to cut all of the triangles apart. So, if you have an aide, get them to help you cut them out and place them in envelopes.
• Place your students in small groups, give them an envelope and let them match up the tool images with their respective names. If using this as a pre-learning activity, see how students did with their matches. This will help you know how well they know their tools. You can then proceed to teaching the tools and their names to students in whatever way you tend to do that. If you need teaching ideas, check out the Sewing Resources below as there are many options to choose from. If you need a web resource to use as a guide, here’s a beginner’s guide titled, Basic Sewing Tools for Beginners.
• If using this as a review, have student groups, make their matches and then you can circulate and check for understanding.
• If using this as an assessment or graded activity, let students cut and tape their own puzzles together, They can add their names to the back and submit for a grade. You’ll have the key, so it should be a quick grading process.

Materials

• Tarsia Puzzles (cut apart and placed in envelopes)
• Envelopes
• Tape
• Scissors

Attachments

• Tarsia Puzzle: Sewing Tools (PDF)

Additional Resources for Teaching Sewing

• Sewing Resources
• Engaging Ways to Teach Sewing Pattern Symbols

Additional Tarsia Puzzles

• Tarsia Puzzles for Foods Class