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Related Activities to Try at Home

Dear Family,

The activities below are related to the mathematics in the geometry unit Comparing and Combining Shapes. Doing them at home together with your child can enrich your child's mathematical learning.

Shape Hunt Shapes are everywhere. Talk with your child about the shapes you see every day. Together, you can look at everything from the shapes of buildings in your neighborhood to the shapes of boxes and cans in the supermarket. Sometimes you can include descriptions of shapes in what you say: “Look at that part of the building shaped like a rectangle.” At other times, you can ask your child to look for specific shapes: “See how many things you can find that are shaped like a triangle while we walk down the street.”

Making Shapes Making shapes is a great way to learn about them. At home, your child can use clay or play dough, drinking straws, tooth picks, or a loop of yarn or rope to make different shapes. Drawing shapes is also fun. Your child may like to design a picture or mural that includes many different shapes.

Seeing Shapes Inside Encourage your child to look for patterns or designs made from different shapes. For example, ask these questions: “Can you find squares on the floor (wallpaper, clothing, and so on)?” “Are there any patterns made from triangles?” “Do you see any hexagons?”

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