-TO LIBRAR

HOW Y
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CHECKERB
COOL ART WITH MATH & SCIENCE

PAPER FOLDING
CREATIVE ACTIVITIES THAT MAKE MATH & SCIENCE

FUN FOR KIDS!

ANDERS HANSON AND ELISSA MANN

 C O O L A R T W IT H MAT H & SCIEN CE

PAPER FOLDING

CREAT IVE A C TIVITIE S T H A T M A K E M A T H & SC I E N C E

FUN FOR KIDS!

ANDERS HANSON AND ELISSA MANN

V I S IT U S AT W W W. A B D O P U B LI S H I N G.CO M
Published by ABDO Publishing Company, a division of ABDO, P.O. Box 398166, Minneapolis,
Minnesota 55439. Copyright © 2014 by Abdo Consulting Group, Inc. International copyrights
reserved in all countries. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without written
permission from the publisher. Checkerboard Library™ is a trademark and logo of ABDO Publishing
Company.

Printed in the United States of America, North Mankato, Minnesota

062013
092013

Design and Production: Anders Hanson, Mighty Media, Inc.

Series Editor: Liz Salzmann
Photo Credits: Anders Hanson, Shutterstock

LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA

Hanson, Anders.
Cool paper folding : creative activities that make math & science fun for kids! / Anders Hanson and
Elissa Mann.
p. cm. -- (Cool art with math & science)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-61783-823-1
1. Paper work--Juvenile literature. 2. Origami--Juvenile literature. 3. Handicraft--Juvenile
literature. I. Mann, Elissa, 1990- II. Title.
TT870. H3139 2014
736.98--dc23
2013001899
 C O NT E NT S

4 C O O L P A PE R F O L D I N G
FUN WI T H FOL DS 20 PROJEC T 3
M A K I N G A MO D U L A R C U B E

6 THE B A S I C S
PA P ER T YP ES A N D FOL D I N G T I P S 24 PROJEC T 4
FO L DI N G A CO M P L E X S H A P E

7 REG U L A R PO L Y GO N S
THE ESSEN T I A L SHA P ES 29 M A TH A ND BEA UTY
I S TH E R E A CO N N E C TI O N ?

8 P LA T O N I C S O L I D S
THE R EG UL A R P OLYHED R ON S 30 M A TH TERM S

10 P ROJE C T 1
FOLDI N G A P L ATON I C SOL I D 31 GLOS S A RY

14 P ROJE C T 2
MA K ING A N I N JA STA R 31 W EB S ITES

18 MODULES
BITS A N D P I EC ES P UT TOG ET HE R 32 INDEX
 PAPER FOLDING
FUN WITH
FOLDS

H ow many different things can you make by folding paper? You might
be surprised. Many kids make paper airplanes and boats. But you can
also make things such as cubes, tetrahedrons, and ninja stars. Get ready to
go on a paper-folding adventure!

4
The Japanese have been folding paper for Modern paper folding
hundreds of years. They call it origami. artists create colorful art
Most origami projects look like animals. using only folded paper.

5
THE B AS I CS
PAPER TYPES AND FOLDING TIPS

F olding paper can be fun. It can also be challenging. With some practice,
you will be a paper folding pro.

ORIGAMI PAPER FOLDING TIPS

Use origami paper for paper- » Be as accurate as possible when
folding projects. It is available you make your folds! Make sure
at craft stores. It is lighter than to crease the folds.

regular paper. This makes it » Be patient. It can take a few tries

easy to fold. Most origami to get it right.
paper is 6 inches by 6 inches
» Read the directions and look
(15.24 cm by 15.24 cm). at the pictures carefully. If you
don’t understand something, ask
a friend or an adult for help.

6
R E GU L AR P O L Y GO N S
THE ESSENTIAL SHAPES

Apolygon is a shape. Its sides are straight lines. In a regular polygon, all the sides are
the same length. And all the corners have the same angle.

THE FIRST EIGHT REGULAR POLYGONS

TRIANGLE SQUARE PENTAGON HEXAGON

(3 SIDES) (4 SIDES) (5 SIDES) (6 SIDES)

HEPTAGON OCTAGON ENNEAGON DECAGON

(7 SIDES) (8 SIDES) (9 SIDES) (10 SIDES)

7
 PLA T O N IC SO L I D S
THE REGULAR POLYHEDRONS

A platonic solid is a three-

dimensional shape. It is
also called a polyhedron. Its
faces are regular polygons.
Each face is the same.

There are five platonic

solids. They are the
tetrahedron, the cube,
TETRAHEDRON CUBE
the octahedron, the
dodecahedron, and the
icosahedron.

Make each solid by folding a

sheet of paper. The pattern
for each solid is shown on the
right. The dotted lines are
tabs for gluing or taping. MADE FROM MADE FROM
4 TRIANGLES 6 SQUARES

8
OCTAHEDRON DODECAHEDRON ICOSAHEDRON

MADE FROM MADE FROM MADE FROM

8 TRIANGLES 12 PENTAGONS 20 TRIANGLES

9
 ICOSAHEDRON

OCTAHEDRON

TETRAHEDRON

10
 STUFF
Y O U´L L

PROJ E C T
NEED
đƫ CARD STOCK

đƫ COLORED PAPER

1
đƫ RULER

đƫ PEN OR PENCIL

đƫ TAPE

FOLDING đƫ SCISSORS

A PLATONIC
SOLID
TERMS
đƫ TETRAHEDRON

đƫ FACE

đƫ EQUILATERAL
TRIANGLE

đƫ MIDPOINT

T he tetrahedron is the simplest platonic solid. It has

four faces. Each face is an equilateral triangle.

The steps show how to fold a piece of paper into a

tetrahedron. Make the other platonic solids using the
same method. See pages 8–9 for the folding patterns.

11
1

HOW TO MAKE IT
1 Use a ruler to draw a 3-inch
(7.6 cm) line on card stock. This
is the base of the triangle.

2 Measure 1.5 inches (3.8 cm) in

from one end of the line. This is
the midpoint. Use the corner of a
piece of paper to draw a line up
2
from the midpoint. It should be
at least 3 inches (7.6 cm) long.

3 Draw a 3-inch (7.6 cm) line from each

end of the base line to the midpoint
line. This will form a triangle.

4 Cut out the triangle. You

will use it as a template.

5 Trace the template on a

piece of colored paper.
4

12
 6

6 Trace three more triangles using the

template. Each triangle should share
a side with the first triangle. All the
triangles will form one big triangle.

7 Cut out the big triangle.

8 Fold each outer triangle in.

8
Crease them along the lines they
share with the center triangle.

9 Lift up two triangles. Tape

their edges together.

10 Put tape on the other edge of both

triangles. Press the edges of the
third triangle to the tape. This
completes the solid tetrahedron.

10

13
14
 STUFF
Y O U´L L

PROJ E C T
NEED
đƫ 2 PIECES
OF ORIGAMI
PAPER

2
TERMS
MAKING A
NINJA STAR
đƫ TRIANGLE

đƫ VERTICAL

H ave you ever seen ninjas in a movie? Ninjas carry

tiny metal stars in their pockets. They throw the
stars at their targets. You can make your own ninja
star, too! Try making this paper version.

Tip: It’s important to make firm creases. Make sure

you fold as accurately as possible!

15
2
HOW TO MAKE IT
1 Lay the paper facedown. Fold it in
half. Make a firm crease. Unfold it.

2 Fold one side of the paper to

the center crease. Crease it.
Repeat with the other side.

3 Leave the sides folded in. Fold

the paper on the center crease.
3
4 Repeat steps 1 through 3 with
a second piece of paper.

5 Lay them down with the folds

on the left. Fold the top right
corner of the first paper down.
Line up the corner with the left
edge. Fold the top left corner of
the second paper down. Line up
the corner with the right edge.

6 Fold the bottom left corner of the first

6
paper up. Line up the corner with
the right edge. Fold the bottom right
corner of the second paper up. Line
up the corner with the left edge.

16
 7
7 On the first paper, fold the left edge
of the top half to the center. The top
point should be on the right side.
Fold the right edge of the bottom
half to the center. The bottom point
should be on the left side. The folds
will make two triangles with pockets.
Fold the top and bottom of the
second paper the opposite way.

8 Flip the first paper over. Turn it

so it’s vertical. Place the second
8
paper on top. Do not flip it over.

9 Fold the bottom right corner up.

Tuck it into the left triangle pocket.
Fold the top left corner down. Tuck
it into right triangle pocket.

10 Flip the papers over. Tuck in the

other corners the same way.

17
MO D U L E S
BITS AND PIECES PUT TOGETHER

M odules are pieces that fit together.

They can be mixed and matched to
make something larger. Modules can always
be separated and put back together in a
different way. They are like building blocks!

Some origami projects are made with folded

modules. It is called modular origami. The
projects on pages 20 and 24 use modules.

REAL LIFE MODULES

A brick is an example of a real-life module.
Bricks are mostly the same size and shape.
When you put them together, they can make
a lot of things. Bricks can make a house, a
road, or an arch!

18
The Colosseum is an ancient stadium in Rome. It was built with bricks. In the 1300s an
earthquake destroyed part of it. Many bricks broke off. They didn’t go to waste, though.
Because bricks are modular, they were reused in other buildings!

19
20
 STUFF
Y O U´L L

P ROJE C T
NEED
đƫ 6 SHEETS
OF ORIGAMI
PAPER

3
TERMS
MAKING A
MODULAR CUBE
đƫ HORIZONTAL

đƫ CUBE

đƫ DIAGONAL

I n modular origami, many identical pieces are put

together. They make a new shape.

In this project, you will make six identical modules.

Then you’ll join them together to make a cube!

21
2

HOW TO MAKE IT
1 Fold a piece of paper in half.
Make a firm crease. Unfold it.

2 Fold one side of the paper

to the center crease. Crease
it. Repeat with the other
side. Flip the paper over.
3
3 Fold the right top corner down.
Line it up with the left edge.
Fold the left bottom corner up.
Line it up with the right edge.

4 Fold the bottom corner up. Line

it up along the left edge. Fold
the top corner down. Line it up
along the right edge. Crease the
folds. Open up the last two folds.

5 Repeat steps 1 though 4 with the

4
other sheets of paper. Flip them
all over. They should each have
a diagonal slot in the middle.

22
 6

6 Lay one folded paper horizontally.

Slide one point of the second paper
into the first paper’s slot from the
top. Slide one point of the third paper
into the slot from the bottom.

7 Flip the three connected papers

over. Fold up the second and third
8
papers. They should stick up on
either side of the first paper.

8 Hold the fourth paper between

the raised ends of the second and
third papers. Fold the point of the
second paper over the fourth paper
and into its slot. Do the same with
the point of the third paper.

9 Add the last two papers to the sides the

same way. Fold the points over and tuck
9
them into the slots from the outside.

23
24
 STUFF
Y O U´L L

P ROJE C T
NEED
đƫ SCISSORS

đƫ 3 SHEETS OF
ORIGAMI PAPER

4
(DIFFERENT
COLORS)

đƫ PEN

FOLDING
A COMPLEX TERMS
SHAPE đƫ SQUARE

đƫ TRIANGLE

đƫ POLYHEDRON

đƫ RECTANGLE

đƫ HORIZONTAL

T his cool shape is made out of squares and triangles.

It is not a polyhedron. That’s because it isn’t a solid.
It has holes in it!

This piece was designed by Japanese origami master

Tomoko Fuse. You can become a folding master too!

25
3

HOW TO MAKE IT
1 Fold three squares of paper in
half. Cut each sheet in half on its
fold. This creates six rectangles.

2 Lay one rectangle facedown

horizontally.

3 Bring the bottom left corner up to

4
meet the top edge. Fold it so the
left edge is even with the top edge.
Bring the top right corner down to
the bottom edge. Fold it so the right
edge is even with the bottom edge.

4 Fold the top left corner down. Line

the corner up with the bottom
corner to the left. Fold the bottom
right corner up. Line up the corner
with the top corner to the right. The
folded paper will have two flaps.
5
5 Fold the right flap down over
the bottom right half. Fold the
left flap up over the top left half.
Each flap has two slots. One at
the tip and one at the base.

26
 6

6 Repeat steps 2 through 5 for

the remaining rectangles.

7 Flip them all over. Label them

with the letters A through F.

8 Pull out the left flap of A. Put the

tip of the flap into the base slot
8
of B’s right flap. Put the tip of B’s
right flap into the base slot of C’s
left flap. Put the tip of C’s left flap
into the base slot of A’s left flap.

9 Put the tip of D’s left flap into

the base slot of A’s right flap.
Put the tip of B’s left flap into
the base slot of D’s right flap.

27
10

10 Put the tip of A’s right flap into

the base slot of E’s left flap.
Put the tip of E’s left flap into
the base slot of D’s left flap.

11 Put the tip of D’s right flap into

the base slot of F’s left flap.
Put the tip of F’s left flap into
the base slot of B’s left flap.
11
12 Put the tip of C’s right flap into
the base slot of F’s right flap.
Put the tip of F’s right flap into
the base slot of E’s right flap.
Put the tip of E’s right flap into
the base slot of C’s right flap.

12

28
MAT H AN D B E A UT Y
IS THERE A CONNECTION?

Mathematics and beauty

have been linked together
for hundreds of years. Many
consider mathematical
objects, such as platonic
solids, to be beautiful. What
do you think?

“Mathematics, rightly
viewed, possesses not only
truth, but supreme beauty.”
—B E R T R A N D RUSSELL JACO P O DE ’ B A R B A R I ,
P O RT RA I T O F LU C A PAC I O L I , 1 5 0 0

L EON A R D O TH E G R E AT
DA V I N C I , PY R A M I DS
UNT I T L E D, AT G I Z A
150 9

29
MATH TERMS
CUBE – a 3-D shape
with six square faces.
DIAGON A L – from one
corner of a square
or rectangle to the
opposite corner.
EQ U ILATERA L TRI A N G L E –
a triangle with sides that
are all the same length.
FAC E – a polygon that
forms one of the flat
surfaces of a 3-D shape.
HOR I ZON TA L – in the S Q UA R E – a shape with
same direction as the four straight, equal sides
ground, or side-to-side. and four equal angles.
the
M I D P OI N T – TE TR A H E D R O N – a 3-D
middle of a line. shape that has four faces.
P OLYHED R ON – a 3-D a shape with
TR I A N G L E –
shape with flat faces three straight sides.
and straight edges.
VERTICAL – in the opposite
a 2-D
R EC TA N G L E – direction from the ground,
shape with four sides or up-and-down.
and four right angles.
30
GLOSSARY

ACCURATE – exact the Japanese

OR I G A M I – VERSION – a different form
or correct. art of paper folding. or type from the original.
IDEN TICAL – exactly SLOT – a narrow opening.
the same.
a large building
STA D I UM –
MODULE – one of a group with an open area for
of similar pieces that sporting events surrounded
can be used together. by rows of seats.
N INJA – a person a shape you
T EM P L AT E –
trained in ancient draw or cut around to copy
Japanese martial arts. it onto something else.

WEB SITES
To learn more about math and science, visit ABDO Publishing Company on the World Wide
Web at www.abdopublishing.com. Web sites about creative ways for kids to experience math
and science are featured on our Book Links page. These links are routinely monitored and
updated to provide the most current information available.

31
INDEX

B M P R
Beauty, and Mathematics, and Paper, types of, 6 Regular polygons, 7
mathematics, 29 beauty, 29 Paper folding Regular
Bricks, as modules, Modules guidelines for, 6 polyhedrons, 8–9
18–19 definition of, 18 history of, 5 T
C origami and, 18 paper for, 6
projects with, Tetrahedrons
projects for,
Complex shape, 21–23, 25–28 as platonic
4, 11–13, 15–17,
project with, solids, 8, 11
in real life, 18–19 21–23, 25–28
25–28
project with, 11–13
Cubes N shapes for, 7, 8–9

as platonic
Ninja star, project
Platonic solids
W
solids, 8 beauty of, 29
with, 15–17 Web sites, about
project with, definition of, 8
math and
21–23 O project with, 11–13 science, 31
F Origami
types of, 8–9
Polygons, 7
Fuse, Tomoko, 25 history of, 5
Polyhedrons, 8
master of, 25
modular
type of, 18
projects with,
21–23, 25–28
Origami paper, 6

32