Feel for Shapes (Early Math Collaborative at Erikson Institute)

Summary

In this preschool classroom lesson, the teacher focuses on helping children understand the attributes of shapes, moving beyond simply naming them. Using the book 'Color Zoo,' the students explore different shapes like triangles, circles, and rectangles. The teacher encourages the children to describe shapes based on their characteristics, such as sides and points. Hands-on activities, like feeling shapes in a mystery bag, help reinforce these concepts. The lesson emphasizes that shapes remain the same regardless of orientation, building the children's ability to recognize and talk about shapes in various ways.

Takeaways

• 📚 The teacher emphasizes the importance of discussing shape attributes in preschool to help children understand what makes a shape, beyond just naming them.
• 🟡 The lesson is based on the story 'Color Zoo', which focuses on shapes, and the children are prompted to identify and describe them.
• 🌟 The first shape mentioned is a star, followed by a circle. The children recognize that the circle has no pointy sides.
• 🔺 A triangle is introduced, and the students realize that no matter how it's turned, it's still a triangle because of its three sides and three points.
• 😊 The teacher is pleased that students independently noted that the orientation of a triangle doesn't change its identity.
• 📐 Two different triangles are compared, with the children noting that both have straight sides and points, despite looking different.
• 👶 The teacher believes it's important to expose children to different types of triangles at a young age before they form fixed ideas about shapes.
• 👐 The children engage in a sensory activity, feeling shapes in a 'mystery shape bag' and identifying them by touch.
• 🟣 When a child correctly identifies a circle, they describe the round sides as the distinguishing feature.
• ✨ The lesson concludes with the teacher feeling pleased about the progress made in discussing shape attributes and looks forward to more exploration.

Q & A

Why does the teacher emphasize the importance of discussing shape attributes in preschool?

The teacher believes that children need more experience talking about shape attributes to better understand what makes a shape, rather than just naming them.

What is the name of the story the children are reading, and what is it about?

The story is called 'Color Zoo,' and it is about shapes.

How does the teacher explain the properties of a circle to the children?

The teacher explains that a circle does not have any pointy sides and emphasizes its roundness.

What did Mario say about triangles, and why was the teacher pleased?

Mario said that no matter which way a triangle is turned, it remains a triangle because it has three sides and three points. The teacher was pleased because this observation was unprompted and showed that the children had internalized the concept.

What activity does the teacher introduce with the 'mystery shape bag'?

The teacher asks the children to feel inside the mystery shape bag and identify shapes by touch, without looking, and then explain how they knew which shape they had found.

How did one child identify a circle from the mystery shape bag?

The child identified the circle by feeling its round side, noting that it had no points.

What did Jeremiah say about identifying the hexagon from the mystery shape bag?

Jeremiah identified the hexagon by feeling its points.

How did a child describe the rectangle, and what did they feel to identify it?

The child identified the rectangle by feeling its long and short sides.

What did another child say about the circle, and how did the teacher respond?

The child mentioned that they felt the roundness of the circle, and the teacher clarified that a circle has to be round and does not have any points.

What is the teacher’s goal for discussing shape attributes with the children?

The teacher’s goal is to start early with helping the children recognize and talk about different types of shapes and their attributes, preparing them for more advanced learning later.