HexTiles is a digital hexagonal thinking tool — completely free. Teachers add vocabulary, share a link, and students build connections that stick.
Hexagonal thinking is a discussion and critical thinking strategy where students arrange concepts on hexagon-shaped tiles and connect them based on relationships they identify.
Because each hexagon has six sides, every tile can connect to up to six neighbors — sparking richer discussion than a simple list or Venn diagram ever could. And because there's no single right answer, it surfaces every student's thinking.
When two tiles share an edge, students explain the connection. That explanation — not the arrangement itself — is where the learning happens. Watch it play out live in the board on the right →
Read more about the strategy at Cult of Pedagogy →From vocabulary list to student activity in under two minutes — for any subject.
Type your key terms — one per line. Works for any content area. Mix in blank tiles for students to fill in themselves.
Click one button to get a shareable link. Paste it into Google Classroom, Schoology, or anywhere you share resources.
Students drag tiles, snap them together, color-code by category, and annotate the connections they discover.
Works across every content area
Processes, systems, and vocabulary in biology, chemistry, physics, and earth science.
Themes, characters, motifs, and literary devices across any text.
Historical events, people, causes, and effects in history, geography, and civics.
Concepts, representations, and real-world applications across any math topic.
Generate a shareable link for each activity. Students open it on any browser — no app, no account, no setup required.
Students color-code tiles by category or confidence. Add blank tiles for students to name themselves — great for fill-in-the-blank activities.
Students label what connects two tiles. Full explanations live behind a clean preview badge — readable without cluttering the board.
Tiles snap together like a honeycomb when placed near each other, making tidy boards effortless even on a trackpad.
Choose what students can do per activity — recolor tiles, add their own, annotate connections, or snap to grid. You decide.
Students submit their finished board as a link with positions, colors, and annotations preserved. Paste it anywhere you collect work.
Add your vocabulary, share a link, and let students start thinking.
⬡ Open HexTiles →