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Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Soma Cubes

We had a museum class today about shapes. One of the main activities we did was to "play" with Soma Cubes. I didn't recognize the name, but I had seen these cubes before. Basically, there are 27 individual cubes which are connected into 7 puzzle pieces. You then put the blocks together to form different shapes.


Since the class wasn't full, the moms got to get involved and I WAS THRILLED to complete the cube! I've never been able to do this before! (And, I didn't have any hints... we just started with simpler puzzles and I figured it out. I really felt as excited as a kid to figure this out!)

I also completed some other neat puzzles - I think this was called the chair.

The snake.

The bed.


And the crystal palace.
You can either make your own puzzle pieces using small wooden blocks, or you can buy a set. There are lots of sites online where you can find photos of puzzles to put together, like at this site. So, now I'm planning on making a set... or finding a set so we can play at home.
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6 comments:

  1. live4evermom10:20 PM

    That is so cool! Reminds me of the puzzles at the Health Museum that we went to after we went to the zoo.

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  2. Lana9:41 AM

    I have totally enjoyed your blog! I love the birds, the stories, the videos and the pictures.

    It is inspiring. My son loved looking at the plants and birds. We will be back!

    www.ilovemy5kids.blogspot.com

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  3. Robin9:07 PM

    What strange little cubes!
    I've got to check these things out. That could be the perfect late-school-year type of activity.

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  4. Anonymous11:20 AM

    I love this puzzle, and I've thought about having my math club make them. Need to find a good (cheap!) source of little wooden cubes.

    Did the students in the museum class glue the cubes together themselves, or were the puzzles already made? I would like to know what glue was used, how long they took to dry, etc...

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  5. CJ11:10 PM

    The Thinkfun block by block puzzle looks very much like the soma cube puzzle. (I haven't used it myself, and so I do not know for sure).

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  6. Unknown3:04 PM

    SOMA-puzzles are incorporated in official tests that psychologist use in evaluating cognitive features of a person. In general, the ability to solve SOMA-puzzles usually follows the curve of intelligence, with occasional shifts when it comes to the most and least intelligent people, promoting a hypothesis that a unique cognitive feature is required for this kind of mental operations. Read more about the Soma Cube: http://www.glennwestmore.com.au/the-soma-cube/

    ReplyDelete