The goal is to twist parts of the cube until each side is all one color!
Go to the Solve It page of the Rubik’s Cube site to watch videos or download documents that teach how to solve many different styles of cubes.
Shutterstock.com (All Images)
Your New Favorite Toy: The Rubik’s Cube
Why you should give this 50-year-old toy a try (if you aren’t a fan already!)
From the February 2024 Issue
Complexity Factors
Standards
PA Images/Alamy Stock Photo (Erno Rubik); COURTESY OF RUBIK’S CUBE/WWW.RUBIKS.COM (Magic Cube); krishna dev/Alamy Stock Photo (Pyramid); Mirko Popadic/Alamy Stock Photo (Silver Cube); Schwan Park (Max Park); Shutterstock.com (All Other Images)
A Long History
1974
A teacher from Hungary, Erno Rubik, makes the first cube out of wood. He calls it the Magic Cube.
1980
The toy is renamed the Rubik’s Cube. It’s a hit all over the world.
Today
You can find the toy in many shapes and sizes!
Solving a Rubik’s Cube Can . . .
- help build your patience.
- improve your memory.
- boost your problem-solving skills.
- help you make friends. Every year, there are more than 1,000 Rubik’s Cube competitions worldwide. Many participants are kids your age!
By the Numbers
- There are 43,252,003,274,489,856,000 (that’s 43 quintillion!) ways to scramble a Rubik’s Cube.
- Less than 6% of the world’s population can solve the toy.
- Max Park holds the world record for fastest solve: 3.13 seconds.
Write to Win
Create a flyer about starting a Rubik’s Cube club at your school. Explain why kids should join, using details from the infographic. Entries must be submitted to “Cube Contest” by a teacher, parent, or legal guardian.* Five winners will each receive a a $20 gift card for the Scholastic Store Online.
*Entries must be written by a student in grades 2-8 and submitted by their teacher, parent, or legal guardian, who will be the entrant and must be a legal resident of the U.S. age 18 or older. Visit the Storyworks Contests page for more information.
This infographic was originally published in the February 2024 issue.
video
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Activities
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Skills Activities
Answer Key
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Step-by-Step Lesson Plan
1. Reading and Discussing
Project the infographic as students follow along in their magazines.
Prompt students to use the headline, subhead, and central image to identify the topic of the infographic.
Ask: Is the purpose of the infographic to
- explain something to you?
- convince you of something?
- tell you how to do something?
Have students look over the labels and images surrounding the central image. Ask:
- How are they related to the central image? (They provide details about the main idea.)
Break students into groups to read each section of the infographic and discuss what they find interesting, surprising, or convincing.
Come back together as a class and ask volunteers to summarize the main idea and supporting details from the infographic.
2. Writing
Preview the writing prompt in the “Write to Win” box.
Download and distribute the guided-writing activity that goes along with the infographic.
Have students respond to the writing prompt. If you wish, send their responses to our infographic contest.
3. Ideas to Engage and Inspire
Have students create their own infographics! Download our “Make Your Own Infographic” activity from Storyworks Digital.
Can't-Miss Teaching Extras
Become a Solver
Meet the World's Fastest!
Get to know the remarkable Max Park, an autistic 21-year-old who recently solved a Rubik’s Cube in 3.13 seconds (the current world record) in this story from NPR.
Text-to-Speech