Image of a rubik's cube
Shutterstock.com (Rubik’s Cube, Competition); COURTESY OF RUBIK’S CUBE/WWW.RUBIKS.COM (Wooden Cube); Daniel Karmann/dpa/Newscom (Erno Rubik); STRONG NATIONAL MUSEUM OF PLAY (Cubes); Pixsell/Alamy Stock Photo (Feet)
Mini History,

The True Story of Rubik's Cube

It twists. It turns. You may know someone who can solve a Rubik’s Cube. But do you know where it comes from? 

From the March/April 2024 Issue

Learning Objective: Students will discover the origin and history of the Rubik’s Cube.

Lexile: 420L
Featured Skill: Text Features, Key Details,
Topic: Social Studies,
Common Core Standards
  • RI.1.3 Describe the connection between two ideas or pieces of information in a text RI.1.5 Know and use text features to locate key facts or information in a text R1.1.6 Distinguish between information provided by pictures and the words in a text RI.1.7 Use the illustrations and details in a text to describe its key ideas SL.1.1 Participate in collaborative discussions with peers and adults
TEKS Standards
  • Social Studies (15) Science, technology, and society. The student identifies individuals who created or invented new technology and understands how technology affects daily life, past and present. The student is expected to: (B) describe how technology has affected communication, transportation, and recreation.

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The First Cube

COURTESY OF RUBIK’S CUBE/WWW.RUBIKS.COM (Wooden Cube); Daniel Karmann/dpa/Newscom (Erno Rubik)

Erno Rubik

It all started with a teacher named Erno Rubik. He made a cube with a lot of small blocks. The blocks were made of wood. They were held together with rubber bands.

At first, Erno could not solve his own puzzle. Then he did it! It took him a month. 

A Cool Toy

 STRONG NATIONAL MUSEUM OF PLAY 

In 1980, toy stores everywhere started selling the Cubes.

Erno was excited about his puzzle. He added colors. He wanted to sell it as a toy.

It was a hit! People bought millions of Rubik’s Cubes. It was the most popular puzzle ever.

New Ways to Cube

Shutterstock.com (Rubik’s Cube, Competition); Pixsell/Alamy Stock Photo (Feet)

Go, speedcubers!

Today the world still loves Rubik’s Cubes. Some people go to Rubik’s Cube competitions. 

They try to solve the puzzle as fast as they can. They are speedcubers. Some of them can solve it faster than you can count to 10! Other people solve it with their eyes closed. Some people do it with their feet.

Erno never knew his cube would get so big!

video (1)
Slideshows (1)
Activities (2)
Skills Activities
Answer Key (1)
video (1)
Slideshows (1)
Activities (2) Download All Skill Activities
Skills Activities
Answer Key (1)

More About the Article

English Language Arts Focus 

Key details

Nonfiction text features

Historical nonfiction

Step-by-Step Lesson Plan
Download the Lesson Plan

IMPLEMENTATION

  • Whole Group

PAIRINGS AND TEXT CONNECTIONS

  • From the Storyworks archive: “Mini History: The True Story of Popsicles” (December 2022/January 2023)

BEFORE-READING RESOURCES

  • Vocabulary Slideshow: (5 minutes) cube, competitions, speedcubers

SUGGESTED READING FOCUS

Information from text and images (20 minutes)

  • Before reading the article, ask children what they know about the Rubik’s Cube. Have they ever played with one? If you have a Rubik’s Cube, pass it around the class for everyone to see and feel.
  • Read the article aloud while students follow along in their magazines. Read it a second time with student volunteers for each section.
  • Ask students to think about why the Rubik’s Cube is so beloved and popular. What do people love about it? What makes challenging puzzles feel fun?

AFTER-READING SKILLS PRACTICE

Skills: Main Idea (15 minutes)

EXTENSION ACTIVITY

Skill: Write (10 minutes)

  • Return to the article during your writing block. Have children think about a toy or material they love. Then have them write a letter to the inventor of that toy describing why it is meaningful and fun to them.

Text-to-Speech