Maths art and making · Maths CAS idea
Design and paint a tessellation mural
CreativityServiceProject-ready
Design an original tessellating pattern and, with a team and the school's permission, paint it as a mural in a shared space.
Where the maths comes in
Translations, rotations and reflections; why some shapes tile the plane and others do not.
Which CAS strand it fits
- Creativity: The arts, and other experiences that involve creative thinking.
- Service: Unpaid, voluntary work with others that also has a learning benefit for you.
Your CAS coordinator decides how an experience counts at your school. Strand summaries are provisional (our words, being checked).
How to run it
- Explore tessellations and design your own tile on paper or in software.
- Pitch the design and location to the school and get approval.
- Plan materials, scale and a grid for transferring the design.
- Paint it with your team and record the process.
This can grow into a CAS project if your CAS coordinator agrees: see planning a maths CAS project.
How to evidence it
- Sketchbook of designs and rejected versions
- Approval and plan
- Photos of the process and the finished mural
Date everything and keep it in your school's CAS portfolio as you go. More on what counts as evidence.
Reflection prompts
Questions to think about, not answers to copy. Write your reflections in your own words, in whatever form your school accepts.
- Which design did you reject, and why?
- How did scaling the design up change it?
- What did working with others on one piece teach you?
Learning outcomes this often gives a chance to show
- Challenge and new skills. What could you not do at the start that you can do now? Which moment felt most uncomfortable, and what did you do next?
- Initiative and planning. What did you plan, and what did you have to change once you started? Who did you need to ask for permission or help, and how did you go about it?
- Collaboration. What did someone else bring that you could not have done alone? Describe a disagreement or a mix-up in the team. How was it resolved?
Whether you meet an outcome depends on what you actually do and reflect on, not on the idea. Outcome labels are our short summaries, being checked.
Safety and ethics
- Use ladders and paints only as staff direct; ventilate the space.
- Only paint where the school has given written permission.
Agree every plan with your CAS coordinator first. Safety and ethics for maths CAS.
Sketch curves and patterns first in the free online grapher.