Year 2 Shape
Another great aspect of maths which involves plenty of practical activities is shape, especially in Year 2. This a time when children get to grips with the properties of 2D and 3D shapes, with the Programme of Study targets being to:
• identify and describe the properties of 2D shapes, including the number of sides and symmetry in a vertical line
• identify and describe the properties of 3D shapes, including the number of edges, vertices and faces
• identify 2D shapes on the surface of 3D shapes, for example a circle on a cylinder and a triangle on a pyramid
• compare and sort common 2D and 3D shapes and everyday objects.•Plenty can be done at home to cover these targets, especially as so many people are receiving goods by delivery at the present time. Those boxes don’t need to be recycled immediately as they are perfect for exploring 3D shapes as well as the 2D shapes within them. I find it fascinating that most boxes are made from a single sheet of card and it is worth exploring these nets with all age ranges.Two other really useful practical items to help with shape are:
a. Cubes: many 3D shapes can be made from cubes. In Year 2 keeping to a small number of cubes, eg four, and exploring all the possibilities, is better than using a much larger number in a more random way.
b. Pinboard/geoboard: a pinboard, or geoboard, to give it its correct name, is very useful for exploring all the possible three, four and five sided shapes (it is not a corkboard for pins but a piece of wood with nails half hammered into it at even spaces). A pinboard can be made by half nailing panel pins or small nails into a piece of plywood approximately 24 cm × 24 cm, making sure that the columns and rows are all equally spaced (2 cm or 3 cm apart).
Our latest set of pages, published this week, takes a closer look at 3D shapes, finding the odd one out from a set and explain why it is the odd one out.