By Anne Marie Burdick
Based on my own research prior to my visit to the museum, I
found out that geometry and art were key components of many civilizations. For
example, in Southern Africa women used to create quilts, murals, and pottery
with geometric designs on them. These pieces of artwork demonstrated symmetry,
tessellations, and transformations, all of which are geometry-based concepts. A
literary resource for students is the book
Women, Art and Geometry in Southern
Africa by Paulus Gerdes. This book is a great resource for students to see
a historical point of view and how math and geometry are used outside of
school.
An activity that teachers could have their students complete
in the classroom is It’s Friezing in
Here: Tessellations through Art, Architecture, and Cultural Artifacts by,
Lynda Colgan. This
activity has students create their own four-cell tile. Students are given
the opportunity to practice translation, reflection, glide reflection, and
tessellations. This activity also allows students to learn why certain culture’s
artwork uses particular shapes and designs based on their beliefs.

By integrating art and geometry, students will
get the opportunity to see the importance of a core subject. When teachers link
math with other subjects they are allowing students to find areas of math they
can relate to. The Museum of Geometric and MADI Art proves that geometry is
used outside of the classroom. By giving students these resources, we are
setting them up to be the next enthusiasts of mathematics, and more specifically
geometry.
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