Minds On

Exploring shapes

Let’s explore some shapes!

A blue shape with 4 straight sides, a pink shape with curved sides, a green shape with 3 straight sides, and a purple shape with 4 straight sides: 2 of the sides are long and 2 of the sides are short.

Brainstorm

Brainstorm

Consider the following questions. If possible, share your thinking with a partner.

  • What are the names of the shapes?
  • Are any of the shapes alike in any way?
  • If you had to sort the shapes into groups, how would you do it?

Identify the shape!

What shape do you think is being described?

Select the correct answer, then press “Check Answer” to see how you did.

Press ‘Answer’ to explore the shape that was described.

I have three sides.

My sides are straight.

I could be a triangle!

There is a picture of a triangle.

Acknowledgements(Opens in a new window)

Action

Examining shapes

A blue shape with 4 straight sides, a pink shape with curved sides, a green shape with 3 straight sides, and a purple shape with 4 straight sides: 2 of the sides are long and 2 of the sides are short.

Each shape has certain things about it that make it different and special.

Some shapes also have things that are the same!

Examining shapes helps us notice things that are the same and things that are different.

When examining shapes, we can notice:

A diagram with 4 sections. Section 1 has a blue square with each side numbered: 1, 2, 3 and 4. Below the square is a label that reads: Number of sides. Section 2 has a pink circle with a wedge cut out of it. Below the circle is a label that reads: Type of sides. The round side of the circle is labelled: curved. The missing section has 2 straight sides labelled: straight. Section 3 has a green triangle labelled green, and a yellow triangle labelled yellow. Below the triangles is a label that reads: Colour. Section 4 has two purple rectangles that are different sizes. The big rectangle is labelled big, and the small rectangle is labelled small. Below the rectangles is a label that reads: Size.

  • the number of sides a shape has
  • the type of sides a shape has: straight or curved
  • the colour of the shape
  • the size of the shape

Can you think of anything else that we can notice about when examining shapes?

Brainstorm

Brainstorm

What are some things that make a square special?

There is a picture of a square.

Press ‘Sample Answer’ to find out some things that make a square special.

A square has:

  • 4 sides
  • straight sides

Sorting shapes by sides

Let’s sort some shapes based on the kind of sides they have.

Do the following shapes have straight sides or curved sides?

Select the correct answer, then press “Check Answer” to see how you did.

Try it

Try it

Can you sort shapes based on the types of sides they have?

Use the following chart, or another method of your choice, to sort any shape of your choosing.

You may use pictures, drawings, pattern blocks, words, or another tool to represent your different shapes.

Shapes with straight sides Shapes with curved sides

Press ‘Sample Answer’ to access a table with some shapes sorted by their type of sides.

The shapes were sorted by the rule: Shapes with straight sides and shapes with curved sides.

Shapes with straight sides Shapes with curved sides
There is a picture of a square. There is a picture of a rectangle. There is a picture of a triangle. There is a picture of a circle.

Can you think of other ways you can sort your shapes?

Be sure to include your rule for sorting.

Guess my sorting rule

Examine the following two groups of shapes. Can you guess the sorting rule that was used to group them?

The sorting rule is:

Shapes that have 4 sides Shapes that do not have 4 sides
There is a picture of a square. There is a picture of a rectangle. A kite or diamond shape A parallelogram There is a picture of a circle. There is a picture of a triangle. An oval A hexagon

Consolidation

Sort the shapes

Sort the following shapes into groups. What rule did you use to sort them?

Record your thinking using a method of your choice.

Twelve 2D shapes in a collage. There is a yellow square, a purple shape with curved sides that looks like a C in bubble letters, a yellow rectangle, a green shape with 2 straight sides and 1 curved side that looks like a pie wedge, a yellow pentagon, a green arc shape with 2 curved sides and 2 straight sides, a purple semicircle, a purple oval, a green circle, a yellow triangle, a green shape with straight edges that looks like a C in block letters, and a purple trapezoid.

Can you think of a different way to sort the shapes?

Record your thinking using a method of your choice. If possible, share your ideas with a partner.

Reflection

How do you feel about what you have learned in this activity? Which of the next four sentences best matches how you are feeling about your learning? Press the button that is beside this sentence.

I feel...

Now, record your ideas about your feelings using a voice recorder, speech-to-text, or writing tool.