Modular Origami Cube
Making a Cube
You will need 6 squares of paper.
You will need at least 3 different colors of
squares (e.g., 2 red squares, 2 yellow
squares, and 2 blue squares).
Questions for discussion:
What are the properties of a square?
Is a square a special rectangle?
Is a square a special parallelogram?
Is a square a special rhombus?
Is a square a quadrilateral?
Quadrilateral Flow Chart
QUADRILATERALS
Parallelogram
Rectangle
Rhombus
Square
Trapezoid
Isosceles Trapezoid
Kite
Step 1. Fold the square in half along
the horizontal line of symmetry.
Questions for discussion:
What shape is created?
What are its properties?
Step 2. Fold the square in half along
its vertical line of symmetry.
Questions for discussion:
What shape is created?
Is this shape congruent to the one created
in the previous step? How do you know?
Step 3. Fold the top edge to the
horizontal line of symmetry (the horizontal
center fold line).
Step 4. Fold the bottom edge to the
horizontal line of symmetry (the horizontal
center fold line).
Step 5. Unfold the square. Make sure the square
is oriented so that the fold lines are horizontal.
Fold the top right corner down to the first
horizontal fold line, and fold the lower left corner
up to the third horizontal fold line.
Step 6. Leaving the two corners folded
down from step 5, fold the top and bottom
edges to the center horizontal line of
symmetry.
Step 7. Fold the top left hand corner
down to the middle of the bottom edge.
Step 8. Fold the lower right hand corner
up to the middle of the top edge.
Questions for discussion:
What shape is created?
What are its properties?
Step 9. Open the parallelogram and tuck
in the triangles formed from steps 7 and 8
under the “dog-eared” flaps.
Step 10. Flip the parallelogram over and
fold the acute angles to the adjacent
obtuse angles.
Questions for discussion:
What shape is created?
What are its properties?
Step 12. Repeat steps 1-10 on the
remaining 5 squares.
Assembling the Cube
Each parallelogram now has a side that has
a square in the center composed of four
quadrants.
Each quadrant has an open edge, or
pocket. Two of the pockets have a singlelayered edge and the other two pockets
have a folded, or double-layered edge.
To form the cube, insert each flap
(acute angle) of one parallelogram
into the single-layered pocket of
another parallelogram.