Origami Animals
Let’s watch a video about making origami animals.
Goal:
Goal:
Let's Watch!
Goal: Can you tell if an origami animal has symmetry?
Zoe really liked the origami butterfly that Logan made. She liked it so much that she asked Logan to teach her how to make other origami animals. Watch the video below to see how Logan’s origami animals relate to symmetry.
Zoe and Logan are meeting at the park today. Zoe was so impressed with the origami butterfly Logan made that she asked him to teach her how to make other origami animals.
“Zoe, I have to tell you something really weird,” Logan says.
“What is it?” Zoe asks.
“Ever since I've been making these origami animals, I've been seeing symmetry everywhere!” Logan says
“What does that mean?” Zoe asks.
“Look at that dog lying down over there. It is symmetrical. If you draw a line down the middle of its face, the left side and right side will be identical!”
“Wow, I never noticed that before!” Zoe exclaims.
“When you make an origami dog face, it will also have symmetry.” Logan explains.
Logan takes 2 square pieces of tan paper and hands one to Zoe.
“This square piece of paper has 4 lines of symmetry. You can fold it in half top to bottom or in half from left to right or you can fold it diagonally both ways.” Logan explains. “Every fold that we make on this dog's face will help us keep vertical symmetry, just like the real dog's face.”
Then Logan shows Zoe how to make a dog's face using these 8 steps.
Logan and Zoe hold up their origami dogs next to the real dog's face.
“Do you see how the left side and right side of the faces are the same?” Logan asks.
“Yes, I do! I think I'm starting to understand symmetry. Are there any other animals that have line symmetry?” Zoe asks.
“Yes! I heard one just now!” Logan chuckles.
“A frog's body is also symmetrical. If you draw a vertical line from a frog's head to its bottom, the left side and right side of the frog are symmetrical.” Logan explains.
Logan pulls out 2 square pieces of green paper. “There are a few more steps to make a frog, but it jumps!” Logan says. Then he shows Zoe how to fold a frog using these 15 steps.
Logan and Zoe hold up their origami frogs to compare them to the real frog. “I see the vertical symmetry!” Zoe exclaims. “This is great! Can we do one more?” she asks.
“Of course! Look over there! It's a turtle. They have symmetry too!”
“Hmm. I think a turtle has vertical line symmetry too. Just like the dog's face and the frog.” Zoe says.
“You're right!” Logan says. “All of these real animals have vertical line symmetry.”
Logan pulls out 2 more square pieces of green paper. “Our turtle will actually have more lines of symmetry than the real turtle,” Logan says. Then he shows Zoe how to fold a turtle using these 17 steps.
Logan and Zoe hold their origami turtles to compare them to the real thing.
“I can really see the vertical line symmetry in these turtles,” Zoe says.
“Yes, but our origami turtle is special. Watch this!” Logan says.
Logan folds the head, legs, and tail underneath the turtle.
“When our turtle goes inside its shell, the shell looks like an octagon. A regular octagon has 8 lines of symmetry,” Logan explains.
“That is awesome!” Zoe exclaims. “I'm going to go home and show my mom these origami animals and tell her all about symmetry. Thanks, Logan!”
“You're welcome!”
Question
Zoe went home and learned how to make her favorite animal, an elephant. Does her elephant have line symmetry?
No, the elephant does not have line symmetry. There is no way to fold the elephant so that both sides are identical.