Recognising and describing shapes - Teachfind

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Recognising and describing shapes

You can use the following standards, goals and approaches to focus your teaching of
recognition and description of shapes in level 2 in mathematics.

Level 2 standards

A child at level 2 standard can:

• recognise and name common 2-D and 3-D shapes in different orientations
• describe properties of common 2-D and 3-D shapes, using mathematical
terms
• make and talk about shapes, referring to their features or properties
• sort 2-D or 3-D shapes according to one or more criteria
• visualise familiar 2-D and 3-D shapes
• solve simple problems involving 2-D and 3-D shapes.

Attaining level 2

To attain level 2, children need to:

• identify and describe 2-D shapes, including squares, triangles, circles,
pentagons and hexagons, using properties such as number of sides and
corners
• handle common 3-D shapes and explore their properties, such as the
number and shape of faces and the number of corners
• consider what is the same and what is different about two or more shapes
• sort shapes, using one criterion initially, and place them in tables and
sorting diagrams
• recognise that a shape does not change when it is in a different orientation
• recognise what changes and what stays the same when shapes are
moved or enlarged.

Suggested teaching approaches

Plan to use a range of approaches and activities when teaching children to recognise
and describe shapes.

• Include shape and space activities in oral and mental work and include
opportunities for discussion and reasoning.
• Provide children with opportunities to create 2-D shapes, including the use
of squared and isometric graph paper.

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Teaching and Learning Resources p.2
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• Give children opportunities to create 3-D models using construction kits
and to explore and discuss their properties.
• Allow children to experience practical hands-on activities, involving shapes
rather than simply responding to representations of them.
• Build on children’s experiences of creating, drawing and manipulating
shapes, helping them to visualise familiar shapes by hiding and revealing
them.
• Model the use of mathematical language, display shape vocabulary and
encourage children to use it accurately.
• Give children opportunities to recognise and talk about shapes in a variety
of contexts, including photographs, pictures, puzzles and the indoor and
outdoor environment.
• Encourage children to discuss the properties of the same shape when it is
placed in different orientations or enlarged.

Teaching and learning resources

You can use a range of resources and interactive teaching programs (ITPs) to
support your teaching of recognition and description of shapes, for example:

• Mathematics ITP: Polygon (SWF-23 KB) Attachments
• Guess my shape spreadsheet (XLS-74 KB) Attachments
• sets of shapes
• isometric graph paper or pinboards
• art straws or construction kits

For intervention materials designed to help you move children from level 1 into level
2, see the following sections of Overcoming barriers in mathematics: Helping children
move from level 1 to 2.

• Name and describe 2-D and 3-D shapes.
• Find similarities and differences between shapes and use these to sort
into sets I can label.

Assessment checklist

You can use the Recognising and describing shapes assessment checklist to support
assessment in this area.

Node information
Attachments Zip:

0d7e434fe5ccaa42dc1b4faa16503b44.zip

File Attachments

• Guess my shape spreadsheet ( xls 75 KB )

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Teaching and Learning Resources p.3
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• Recognising and describing shapes assessment checklist ( doc 57 KB )
• Mathematics ITP: Polygon ( swf 23 KB )

© Crown copyright 2011