How to create tessellations

1.Before starting your tessellations you need to have all the toolbars on your screen.

2. If you haven’t got the Draw toolbar then go to View – Toolbars –Drawing or click on the Drawing button in the Standard toolbar.

3.Students will need to learn how to tear of floating Menus.

4. Click on the AutoShapes button, click on Basic Shapes and then click on the bar at the top of the menu and drag, it will float and you can drag it anywhere you like on the screen.

Other menus you may have to drag onto the screen are

© Jacqui Sharp updated 2008 Page 1

Before starting Tessellations


Step One:1. Change your page view so that you can

see most of your page (50% or 75%).2. Click on AutoShapes .3. Click on Basic Shapes.4.Drag and click on the Title bar to make that

menu float.5. Click on the Triangle shape.6.Click and drag a triangle shape on the page

(don’t make it too big as you are going to cover the page with lots of triangles.)

Create your own Tessellations

Hint: if you make it too big, click once on it and press Delete on the keyboard.


Step Two:1.Make sure the triangle is selected (it will have

white handles around it.

2.Press Ctrl - D (Windows) or Apple – D (Mac)

lightly.

3.This will duplicate your triangle exactly

4.Move it into place next to the first triangle.


Hint: use the arrow keys on the keyboard to move shapes


Step Three:


1.Repeat Step Two until you have at least 6 triangles across the page.

2.Click on the first triangle again, duplicate it.3. Go to Draw – Rotate or Flip – Flip Vertical.4.Move the triangle into place.


Step Four:1.Duplicate that new triangle again and move it into place2.Duplicate more triangles and see how they fit into a pattern.3. If you want to duplicate or flip more than one shape at a time

do thisa.Click on one triangle and then hold down the Shift key and

select the other triangles, they will all have white handles around them, once they are all selected duplicate or flip them together.



Step Five:1. Colour your triangles by clicking on the Paint Can

button and selecting a colour.

2.Hold down your shift key and select multiple

triangles to fill them in at the same time.



Step Six:1. Click on the Paint Can button 2. Add interesting colours and effects by

selecting Fill Effects.3.Select different colours to make different

effects.a. Click on Two colours and select

different colours from the drop down menus

b. Click on a Shading Style and then click on one of the Variant boxes to set the shading style

c.Click OK



Step Six Continued:1. Or choose the Texture Tab to add a

different style of pattern.

2. Clicking on the Pattern tab will create

another different effect.



Step Six continued:

1. Clicking on the Picture Tab will

enable you to insert a photo or a

graphic into the shape.

2. Click on Select Picture, navigate to

where your pictures are stored.

3. Choose a picture and click OK.



Step Seven:1.Select a different shape from

AutoShapes and test how that one will

reflect and translate.

2.Will it fit in and interlock with itself?

3. If it doesn’t fit in exactly hold down your

Ctrl (Win) or Option (Mac) key and use

the arrow keys on the keyboard to make

it move in tiny steps.



Step Eight:1. From AutoShapes select a Hexagon

2.Try fitting triangle shapes around it

3. You will need to use the Rotate button or the green

rotate circle on the shape

4.Can you translate these shapes?

Hint: if you have put your triangles around the hexagon you will need to group them so that they all move as one shape. Click on one shape, hold down your Shift key and select all the other shapes. Go to Draw – Group.



Step Nine:

1.Experiment with different shapes to see

which ones will tessellate, reflect and

translate.

2.All shapes must have no colour.

3.Fill the page.

4.Print out your tessellation so another

student can colour it in.



Step Ten:1.Design Wrapping paper for a special

occasion

2.Who is it for?

3.What is the occasion?

4.Why have you chosen this particular

design for this person?



Hold down the Shift Key (option for Mac) when dragging a shape onto the page, it will be perfectly proportional.

Hold down the Ctrl Key (option for Mac) and click and drag on a shape and it will duplicate, keep clicking and dragging on the new shape and it will duplicate.

To drag several objects together, click on one, hold down the Shift key and then click on all the other shapes, they will all be selected. Click in the middle of one shape and drag them all at the same time.

Another way to select all of the objects together is to click on the Select Objects button on the Draw Toolbar and then click and drag the mouse around the group of shapes.

Tips and Tricks


Press the Ctrl D Key (Apple D for Mac) when duplicating a shape. If you don’t click anywhere else, after duplicating but stay selected on that new shape, move it into place and then Ctrl D that one, the computer will remember the exact distance to place it and will move it directly in line with the previous shape.

Use the 3D menu button on the Draw toolbar to add a 3 dimensional view to your tessellations.

The AutoShapes menu has more choices when you click on More AutoShapes.

Tessellations are quick to make once you have your main pattern organised. Select the entire main pattern, group it by going to Draw-Group, now it is one single graphic, duplicate it and move it into place.

Tips and Tricks

Documents

How to create tessellations