From the apple on your desk and the coffee cup in your hand, to the cabinets along the classroom wall, basic three-dimensional shapes are found everywhere in the world around us. Introduce young mathematicians to the these common figures...

Students construct polygons. They identify attributes of three-dimensional shapes. Students name common three-dimensional shapes. They draw three-dimensional shapes, and sort three-dimensional shapes. Students use K'NEX materials sets to...

The coal is mined. Now what? Scholars design a coal silo that stores mined earth using at least two different three-dimensional shapes. They calculate the volume, determine the amount of mined earth produced in a day, and find the amount...

The objectives in the resource allow students to explore the characteristics of simple solid shapes. Youngsters learn to recognize the face shapes, corners, and edges that make up 3-D figures by filling in a chart. Lastly,...

We would be lost without maps! How are they made? Introduce junior topographers to LIDAR technology with a fascinating activity. Set up a mock city, then have learners operate a laser measure to determine the shape of the landscape using...

Art can mimic life, and animals are always interesting subjects. Learners create large soft sculptures (stuffed) birds using paper, paint, and other basic collage materials. They view images of birds, and discuss bird traits and shapes....

Middle schoolers study the triangle inequality. They will identify, compare, and analyze attributes of two and three-dimensional shapes. Then they develop vocabulary to describe the attributes. They also use manipulatives to analyze the...

Partners use materials to wrap three-dimensional objects to determine the formula for surface area. The groups use an orange to calculate the amount of peel it takes to completely cover the fruit. Using manipulatives, individuals then...

If you could build your own treehouse, what would it look like? Using a piece of contemporary art as inspiration, learners draw their own treehouses and add geometric and organic shapes. The lesson touches on Visual Thinking Strategies...

I've said it before, and I'll say it again, you can add art to any lesson! While little learners are discovering why fish have specific body parts such as, scales, fins, and gills, they start making three-dimensional fish forms. Children...

Students construct three-dimensional solar system mobiles.

Break out those math manipulatives, it's time to teach about area! Capturing the engagement of young mathematicians, this three-lesson series supports children with learning how to measure the area of squares, rectangles, and other...

Elementary schoolers examine the attributes of triangles. In this triangle lesson, learners compare regular triangles and right triangles. They explore vertices and angles and investigate obtuse and acute angles. Pupils draw multiple...

Extend young mathematicians' understanding of area with a geometry lesson on trapezoids. Building on their prior knowledge of rectangles and triangles, students learn how to calculate the area of trapezoids and other...

Human fingerprint patterns are the result of layers of skin growing at different paces, thus causing the layers to pull on each other forming ridges. Here, groups of learners see how patterns and fingerprints assist scientists in a...

Fifth graders create a net for a given polyhedron. They determine the corresponding polyhedron for a given net. Students investigate several polyhedra (cube, tetrahedron, and one of their choosing) and their corresponding nets. They...

Everything old is new again. The Los Angeles J. Paul Getty Museum presents a lesson on how Greek black-figure painting influenced eighteenth century Neoclassical artists. After looking at a series of examples, class members create their...

Students follow directions in the ABC of Symmetry to make a butterfly which shows a line of symmetry.

In addition to the catchy title, this lesson plan provides upper graders an opportunity to more closely scrutinize the attributes of plane figures. In particular, they focus on the similarity of different shapes. Both whole-class and...

Fifth graders create a reflection of a poygon using a Mira. They discover that a line connecting a vertiex of a polygon and the corresponding vertex of its reflection is perpendicular to the line of reflection. Students create a glide...

Students recognize that quilts are created by geometric components. They examine how quilts are an artistic art form that show the cultural heritage of the people who make them.

Third graders use pattern blocks of one shape at a time to try to create a similar shape. They compare the perimeter of the new figure with the perimeter of the original shape and look for a pattern. Students use the pattern to predict...

Take young scholars on a trip through history with this unit on the mathematics and architecture of the Mayan civilization. Starting with a introduction to their base twenty number system and the symbols they used, this eight-lesson unit...

Students listen to a read aloud of The Quiltmaker's Gift by Jeff Brumbeau finding examples of symmetry in the illustrations in the book.