Feel for Shapes (Early Math Collaborative at Erikson Institute)

eriksonmath

7 Jan 201505:54

Summary

TLDRIn 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.

Outlines

00:00

🔵 Importance of Teaching Shape Attributes in Preschool

The teacher explains the need to go beyond simply naming shapes in the preschool classroom. She emphasizes the importance of helping children understand and describe the attributes that define different shapes. During the lesson, the children discuss various shapes from the story 'Color Zoo,' focusing on specific shapes like circles and triangles. A student insightfully notes that a triangle remains a triangle regardless of how it is oriented, which pleases the teacher as it shows the children internalizing the lesson.

05:00

🔺 Exploring Triangles and Encouraging Shape Discovery

The teacher introduces two triangles, prompting the children to compare their similarities and differences. The discussion revolves around how both triangles have straight sides and points, even though they look different. By encouraging children to identify these characteristics, the teacher aims to shape their understanding of triangles early on, so they can recognize different types of triangles before forming rigid ideas about the shape.

Mindmap

Keywords

💡Shapes

Shapes refer to the form or outline of an object, such as circles, triangles, and rectangles. In the video, understanding shapes and their attributes is a key focus, as the children learn to identify and describe different shapes and their properties. For example, they discuss how a triangle has three sides and three points.

💡Attributes

Attributes are characteristics or features that help to define or describe an object. In the context of the video, children are learning to describe the attributes of shapes, such as the number of sides and points. For instance, they note that a circle has no pointy sides and is round.

💡Preschool

Preschool is an educational setting for young children, typically ages 3-5, before they begin formal schooling. The video takes place in a preschool classroom where the teacher is introducing the concept of shapes to the students, emphasizing the importance of early exposure to these concepts.

💡Circle

A circle is a shape with no corners or edges, characterized by its round form. In the video, children identify a circle by feeling its round sides, and they learn that a circle does not have any pointy sides, which distinguishes it from other shapes.

💡Triangle

A triangle is a three-sided polygon with three points. The video highlights how a triangle remains a triangle regardless of its orientation, as explained by a student who notes that 'no matter which way the shape goes, it's still a triangle.' This helps children understand the consistent properties of geometric shapes.

💡Zoo

In the video, 'zoo' refers to a story titled 'Color Zoo,' which is used as a teaching tool to explore shapes. The story incorporates animals made up of different shapes, helping children to connect geometric concepts with familiar objects in a fun and engaging way.

💡Mystery Shape Bag

The mystery shape bag is a teaching aid used in the video where children use their sense of touch to identify shapes without looking. This activity encourages sensory exploration and reinforces their understanding of shape attributes by feeling the sides and points of each shape.

💡Hexagon

A hexagon is a six-sided polygon. In the video, a child identifies a hexagon by feeling its points. This helps to illustrate the concept of shapes having a specific number of sides and points, enhancing the children's ability to distinguish between different polygons.

💡Rectangle

A rectangle is a four-sided polygon with opposite sides that are equal in length. The video shows children identifying a rectangle by feeling its long and short sides, teaching them about the properties that define a rectangle, such as having four sides and four right angles.

💡Exploration

Exploration refers to the act of investigating or learning about something in a detailed manner. In the video, the teacher expresses a desire to continue the exploration of shape attributes with the children, indicating an ongoing process of discovery and learning in the classroom.

Highlights

The teacher emphasizes the importance of teaching preschoolers about shape attributes beyond just naming shapes.

The lesson revolves around the book 'Color Zoo,' which introduces different shapes as part of animals.

The first shape identified in the lesson is a star, followed by a circle, which is discussed for its lack of pointy sides.

A student points out that no matter how a triangle is turned, it remains a triangle, which the teacher notes was unprompted.

The teacher uses a 'mystery shape bag' to make the lesson interactive, encouraging children to identify shapes by feel.

The children compare two triangles, noting similarities like straight sides and differences such as one being longer.

A student recognizes that both triangles, despite their differences, share the same key characteristics of three sides and three points.

The tactile activity asks students to feel shapes without looking and describe how they identified the shapes, promoting sensory learning.

One child successfully identifies a circle by feeling its smooth, round edges, showing a growing understanding of shape characteristics.

Another student identifies a hexagon by feeling its points, demonstrating knowledge of how a shape's features can be felt.

A rectangle is identified based on its long sides and short sides, with the student explaining how they distinguished it from other shapes.

A discussion about circles emphasizes that a circle is defined by its roundness and the absence of points, reinforcing key shape attributes.

The teacher uses student responses to reinforce that shapes retain their characteristics, such as a triangle always having three sides and points.

The lesson promotes critical thinking by encouraging children to use language to describe shapes, not just name them.

The teacher is pleased with how students have internalized the concept that shapes maintain their defining attributes regardless of orientation.