We're Going on a Shape Hunt!

Activity Description

Why This Is Helpful

 

Activity Description

“We’re going on a shape hunt. Do you see a circle?”

Shapes are everywhere—from the pancakes on our breakfast plates to the street signs around town. After sharing a book about shapes and reviewing various shape “models” you’ve created, learning to spot them in the environment is more than just a fun game for children. It also helps them tie together different skills such as recognizing and identifying shapes and using words and pictures to describe their location. Just as important, this activity will also give children a sense that they know something important, making it highly likely that their shape-hunting skills will continue long after the game is over!

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Why This Is Helpful

Math and reading skills may seem a world apart, yet many activities can work to strengthen both at the same time. Learning to identify shapes in the world around us is one of them.

When children look at shapes in a book, they learn to attach words to mathematical ideas. When they find these same shapes around them, they begin to see how math connects to their world, which is just as important as thinking critically, sorting, and naming, all skills they’ll use to describe what and where the shape is.

This activity was modified from the ReadWriteThink lesson plan “Going on a Shape Hunt: Integrating Math and Literacy.”

 

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