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Tessellation Station


Instructions

  1. Study the gap. Look at the missing space and compare its white flag and dark dot with the markers on the loose tile. These help you determine how the tile needs to move and turn.

  2. Choose a transformation. Decide whether the tile needs to be translated, reflected, or rotated.

  3. Set up your move. Depending on the level, you might drag a translation vector, position a reflection line, enter a rotation angle, or use coordinate notation and equations.

  4. Apply the transformation. Move the tile into the gap. If it doesn't land correctly, it stays where it landed so you can adjust your strategy or undo.

  5. Earn stars. Complete the puzzle in the target number of moves to earn three stars. Extra moves and hints can cost stars.

  6. Keep solving. Work through 20 levels across five stages, with new puzzles whenever you replay a level.

  7. Create your own tessellation. Visit the Studio to use transformations, shapes, and colors to build a tessellation from a single tile.

Introduction

Turn geometric transformations into a puzzle! In Tessellation Station, students complete tessellations by translating, reflecting, and rotating tiles to fill missing spaces. Each level challenges students to recognize how a figure moves, choose the correct transformation, and apply it using a coordinate plane. As the puzzles become more challenging, students combine transformations and eventually design their own tessellations in the Studio.

WHY THIS GAME MATTERS

Why students love this game:

  • It's a puzzle, not a worksheet. Finding the right transformation and fitting the missing tile into a pattern makes geometry feel like a challenge worth solving.

  • Mistakes are part of the process. When a tile misses its target, it stays where it lands. Students can adjust their moves instead of starting over.

  • Every replay is different. Fresh puzzles, stars to earn, and a leaderboard give students a reason to keep playing.

  • They get to create. The Studio lets students design their own tessellations using 10 shapes and 10 colors.

Skills students build:

  • Choosing the Right Transformation

  • Writing Transformation Rules

  • Understanding Rotations

  • Combining Transformations

Great For

Tessellation Station works well for:

  • Introducing transformations: Help students visualize translations, reflections, and rotations.

  • Independent practice: Give students an interactive way to apply transformation rules.

  • Math stations: Add a geometry puzzle to your classroom rotation.

  • Enrichment: Challenge students with multi-step transformations and the open-ended Studio.

  • Review days: Reinforce coordinate notation, rigid motions, and congruence.

The game is single-player, free to play, and runs in a browser on Chromebooks, laptops, and tablets.

Accessibility Matters

Tessellation Station is designed to make interactive geometry practice accessible to more students.

  • High-contrast visuals designed to meet WCAG standards.

  • Fully playable using a keyboard.

  • Touch controls for tablets.

  • Screen-reader descriptions of the game board.

  • Two hints available per level.

  • Undo option when a transformation misses its target.

  • Fresh puzzles each time a level is replayed.

  • Start Fresh option to replay the game with new problems.

  • Leaderboard for top scores.

  • Free Studio for creating and exploring tessellations.

KEEP THE LEARNING GOING

Try more free math games from When Math Happens:

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