EXPLORING SHAPES
DISCOVERY KIT
Designed to meet these objectives:
Math
• Students will identify geometric shapes.
• Students will sort and classify geometric shapes by their attributes.
• Students will make observations and predictions.
With 15 solid wood shapes, a ramp, and three write & wipe exploration charts, the Exploring Shapes
Discovery Kit is a terrific tool for helping children learn about 3-D shapes! As children compare shapes
of different sizes, examine their faces, and count their edges and corners, they’ll start to understand the
attributes that define geometric shapes. Then, when they make and test predictions about the ways different
shapes move down a ramp, they’ll get hands-on experience to reinforce their new knowledge. Plenty of
samples and colorful, easy-to-read charts make the kit perfect for small-group settings or whole-class lessons!
What’s Included
• 15 solid wood shapes (5 different shapes and colors; each shape comes in 3 sizes)
• Sturdy folding ramp
• 3 write & wipe exploration charts
Before You Begin
The ramp in your kit folds flat for convenient storage. To form
the ramp, simply open the folds and tuck the side panel behind
the flap as shown. A magnetic strip hidden inside the flap holds
the ramp together until you are ready to store it again.
Getting Started
Invite children to examine the wooden shapes. Guide their explorations with questions such as “How many
different kinds of shapes can you find?” and “Are all of the shapes the same size?” Help children discover
that there are five different shapes, and each shape comes in three sizes. Explain that these solid shapes are
called three-dimensional, or 3-D, shapes. Ask, “How are these 3-D shapes different from 2-D shapes like
squares, triangles, and circles?” Point out that 2-D shapes have only two dimensions (length and width), so
they are flat. Solid, 3-D shapes have three dimensions (length, width, and height), so they fill up space. Hold
up each shape in a set (sphere, cube, cone, cylinder, and square pyramid), and ask if anyone can tell you what
it is called. Help children think of real-world examples of each shape, and prompt them to look around the
classroom for other examples.
WARNING:
©2010 Lakeshore
(800) 428-4414
www.lakeshorelearning.com
CHOKING HAZARD—Item contains small
parts and small ball. Not for children under 3 yrs.
FF119
Ages 4+
Made in China
Using the Materials
Exploring Faces Chart
Before you introduce the chart, discuss the term faces with
your students. Explain that the flat surfaces of 3-D shapes
are called faces. Invite students to dip the faces of the shapes
into a dish with water and then press them against a sheet of
construction paper. What do they see? Point out that the faces
of solids (3-D shapes) are 2-D shapes such as circles, squares,
triangles, and rectangles. Encourage children to examine the faces
of the solids and see what 2-D shapes they can find.
X
6
0
1
X
Next, introduce the Exploring Faces chart, displaying it where
everyone can see it easily. Explain that it is a write & wipe chart,
so only special write & wipe markers may be used to write on it.
Pick up a cube and show it to students. Read the definition of a
face at the top of the chart. Then, ask, “Who can point to a face
on this cube? What shape is the face?” Invite a volunteer to put
an “X” on the chart in the Square Face column of the “cube” row.
Encourage children to look at all of the faces of the cube. Do they
see any other shapes besides squares? Finally, ask students to help you count the faces on the cube, and invite
a volunteer to write the number (6) in the appropriate space on the chart.
X X
X
5
2
Repeat with the other solid shapes. Point out that one way to tell how many faces are on the square pyramid
is to count the number of each shape on its surface, and then add those numbers together: 4 triangle faces
plus 1 square face equals 5 faces altogether. After students have completed the chart, review what they have
learned by asking questions such as “Which shapes have circular faces?,” “Which shape has no faces?,”
“Which shape has two different face shapes?,” and so on.
Erase the chart and set it in your math center along with the shapes and a write & wipe marker. Encourage
children to explore the shapes and complete the chart on their own.
Exploring Edges and Corners Chart
Talk with students about edges and corners. Who knows what
they are? Can someone point to an edge or a corner on one of
the solid shapes? Explain that an edge is the line where two faces
meet. A corner is the point where three or more edges meet.
Encourage children to examine the solid shapes and look for edges
and corners.
12
0
1
8
2
8
0
0
5
0
No
Yes
Yes
No
Yes
Next, introduce the Exploring Edges and Corners chart and display
it where children can access it. Remind them to use only write &
wipe markers on this chart. Next, show children a solid shape,
such as the square pyramid. Review the definitions of “edge” and
“corner” at the top of the chart. Then, ask, “Who can point to an
edge on this square pyramid?” Invite students to help you count
the edges on the shape, and have a volunteer write the number (8)
in the appropriate space on the chart. Do the same for the corners
(5). Does the square pyramid have any curved edges or surfaces?
(It doesn’t.)
Repeat with the other solid shapes. Afterwards, review the attributes
of the shapes by asking questions such as “Which shape has the
most edges?,” “Which shapes have no corners?,” “Which shapes
have curved surfaces?,” and so on.
2
Erase the chart and set it in your math center along with the shapes and a write & wipe marker. Encourage
children to explore the shapes and complete the chart on their own.
Exploring How Shapes Move Chart
Set out the ramp and the solid shapes and display the chart
where children can reach it easily. Tell students that you are
going to do some experiments to find out more about the
properties of solid shapes. Explain that you are going to test each
shape to see how it moves down the ramp.
Show students a cube. Ask, “Do you think this cube will roll down
the ramp?” Discuss it as a group, and then write an “X” in
either the Roll or Slide box in the What Will Happen? section of
the chart. (As an alternative, you may write either “yes” or “no”
in the Roll or Slide box to show the group’s prediction. Or, for
small groups, you may prefer to make a tally mark in either the
Roll or Slide box to show each individual child’s prediction.)
Set the cube at the top of the ramp and watch what happens.
Were their predictions correct? Ask, “Why do you think the cube
slid down the ramp? Why didn’t it roll down?”
X
(predictions (predictions
will vary)
will vary)
X
X X
X
X X
Repeat the experiment with the other shapes, making sure to
mark students’ predictions on the chart before you test each
shape, and then discuss the results after each test. After all
of the experiments have been completed, encourage children
to review the chart, and help them summarize what they learned, such as “Shapes with flat faces will slide;
shapes with curved surfaces will roll; shapes with both flat faces and curved surfaces will slide and roll.”
Erase the chart and set it in your math center along with the shapes, ramp, and a write & wipe marker.
Encourage children to do the experiments again and complete the chart on their own.
Extension Activities
•P
rompt students to sort the 3-D shapes by type: cubes, cylinders, and so on. Then, have them arrange each
group by height. Do the properties of solid shapes stay the same even though the sizes are different?
• Invite children to look for everyday examples of 3-D shapes in the classroom or bring examples from home,
such as tissue boxes or dice for cubes, cans for cylinders, playground balls or oranges for spheres, and so on.
•T
ake a walk around the school or neighborhood and see if you can find examples of the 3-D shapes in buildings,
playground equipment, or natural objects.
•P
rovide dough or clay and suggest that children try creating their own 3-D shapes. Which shapes are easy to
form? Which are the most difficult?
•W
hich shapes can be stacked on top of each other? Make predictions and perform experiments as you did
on the Exploring How Shapes Move chart. Help children summarize the properties that a shape must have
to be “stackable,” for example, “It must have two flat faces on opposite sides.”
3
Informal Assessment Ideas
• Set out the shapes and ask the student to name each one.
• S how the student a solid shape and ask her to point to the faces. Can she tell you what shape(s) the faces
are (circle, triangle, or square)? Repeat with the remaining solid shapes.
• S how the student a solid shape and have him point to the edges (or corners). Can he tell you how many
edges (or corners) the shape has? Repeat with the remaining solid shapes.
• S et out one of the solids and invite the child to name an everyday object that has the same shape. Repeat
with the remaining solid shapes.
•C
hoose a solid shape and show it to the student. Ask whether the shape will roll, slide, or both. Can the
student explain why?