6/11/2023 0 Comments Shapes and namesThe way I usually overcome this is to praise my child’s efforts and for example say ‘Yes the ball has a circle shape – it is called a sphere or I agree the window does look like a square. There is also the issue that in our environment most shapes are actually 3d and a ball is not a circle but a sphere. The key though is to try and develop an understanding in your child that not all triangles for instance look the same and to begin developing the knowledge of the difference between square shapes and rectangles or circles and ovals. They have minimal sides to count, have specific attributes such as corners and sides to identify and can easily be found in our environments. What shapes should I teach first?Ĭircles, squares and triangles are the three basic shapes that are often taught first. But for those parents perhaps trying to get their child into an elite school or wanting to ensure their child knows the names when in that interview, it is important to them that their child is able to identify and name shapes. As a teacher myself sitting there I am like please know the answers, please know the answers because I have never actually directly taught my children this basic knowledge, but I know that I always indirectly teach it whenever there is an opportunity in real life or a book we are reading – needless to say they knew all of the basic ones. I was never an enrolment officer for a school, but I am a parent and have already attended more than five of these types of interview assessments as I have three children in school and we have moved schools several times. Being able to recognize that a circle is different from a square and describe that it is because a circle is round whereas a square has corners and straight lines are important in developing the skills to be able to identify letters and other visual patterns.įor many parents, it is important that their toddlers learn shapes as it is one of the most common questions and tests completed by schools at enrolment interviews. Each letter you are reading right at this moment is made up of different shapes and lines that your brain has learned to recognize, sort, and give meaning to. It is important for toddlers to learn shapes because being able to identify, organize, and categorize shapes is one of the underlying skills of being able to read. Why is it important for toddlers to learn shapes? At this age especially as verbal development can vary between children it is important to see what other skills and ways they are able to show you their knowledge and learning – such as when my two year old puts his hands above his head to show me the shape of a triangle and rocket. Toddlers and preschoolers with good verbal and cognitive skills may be able to point to and tell you the names of the shapes, another child may show you they understand they are different by being able to group similar shapes together, another may easily finish a shape puzzle and another might be able to show you by drawing the shapes. Some may also be able to differentiate between squares and rectangles or circles and ovals and be able to identify diamonds and stars.īut this does not mean all children at this age are able to convey to you they are aware of this knowledge in the same way. just fun!īy three years old children should be able to recognize and identify simple 2D shapes such as a circle, square, and triangle. He learned this information having fun – no flashcards, no trying to make him sit still and listen, not tantrums…. He had learned this information dancing and moving like a rocket with me as we rewatched my creative dance lessons that focus on building shape awareness in kids. At 2.5yrs my little boy could identify that the images on my screen where shapes and that one of them was a triangle – but I had never taught him this directly. To say that I was kind of blown away was an understatement, I mean I knew logically having trained as a teacher and having taught in classrooms that my ideas and techniques to expose concepts through movement would encourage learning, but here I was seeing it first hand. Looking at shapes visually, handling them physically, talking about them and moving their bodies to create them.Īs I am writing this post my 2-year-old toddler who has done many of the movement lessons I write about in this post is sitting on my lap, snuggling down, and getting ready for his nap, when he gets distracted by an image on my screen. To teach toddlers and preschoolers to identify shapes and name them, they need to be exposed to shapes in as many different ways as possible. Teaching children to name, organize and categorize shapes is one of the first formal educational skills we as parents and educators tend to teach our children.
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