Illustrative Mathematics
Hexagonal Pattern of Beehives
Young geometers and biologists investigate the math of nature in an activity that is just the bee's knees. Participants will study the tessellations of hexagons in a beehive, along with the natural rationale behind the specific shape....
Curated OER
A Honey of a Hexagon
Students explore how bees make honey and why the hexagon is the best basic pattern for the honeycomb through the use of a video and hands-on activities with honeycombs and geometric shapes.
Curated OER
Tantalizing Tessellations - Lesson I
Learners complete a chart (KWL) as a pre-assessment, study the history of tessellations (tilings), investigate the properties of tessellations, and make and evaluate photographs of "found tessellations" for a PowerPoint/HyperStudio...
Illustrative Mathematics
Illustrative Mathematics: G Mg Hexagonal Pattern of Beehives
Beehives are made of walls, each of the same size, enclosing small hexagonal cells where honey and pollen are stored and bees are raised. This problem examines some of the mathematical advantages of the hexagonal tiling in a beehive....
University of Cambridge
University of Cambridge: Nrich: Buzzy Bee Problem
See if you can find the pattern in Buzzy Bee's honeycomb. The solution is available right at this one page website.
Mathigon
Mathigon: Geometry: Polygons and Polyhedra: Tessellations
This lesson focuses on tessellations, a tessellation is a geometric pattern that covers a surface without gaps or overlaps. They can be seen everywhere in nature such as a honeycomb or a tortoise shell.