“This one is very complicated. It has three corners and sides. On the bottom it’s small. After you draw the bottom, then the left corner is medium and the right corner is giant.”
1st Grade mathematicians are studying shapes and time in their final unit of the year. This week, they worked on matching both regular and irregular shapes to their descriptions, sharpening both observation and math vocabulary in the process. Terms like: corner, side, point, diagonal, even, equal, symmetric, vertex, and more, supported students in completing games where you try and draw a hidden shape to match a peer’s description: “It’s close to that! But skinnier.”
This one is very complicated. It has three corners and sides.
They also played a game trying to draw a shape with given attributes that would be different than any other player’s drawing. Students have been exploring the meaning of 2D vs 3D and connecting these to prior learning about prisms. Next, they will extend their understanding of shapes to make composite shapes, to divide shapes evenly by area, and to describe these parts using words like “halves” and “fourths.” This learning about 2D shapes and attributes helps students distinguish between definitional attributes and details of a specific instance of that shape. It also prepares them to think meaningfully about the divisions of an analog clock, which will be the end of this unit. In their three “just right” math groups, students each work on these learning goals but with extensions, supports and pacing that meets them where they are and helps them get to the next level in understanding.