A Shape Scavenger Hunt

Squares, circles, triangles, hexagons, cubes, cones, cylinders and spheres!

By the end of Kindergarten, Common Core State Standards require that kids be able to identify and describe shapes as well as analyse, compare, create and compose them.

In Forest Kindergarten we talk a lot about the different shapes that we see every day. One of the ways we incorporate shape building and shape recognition into our daily routine is by going on a shape scavenger hunt!

It's a blast.

We start by dividing into three groups. Each group finds a part of the woods to build and hide their shapes in. After about ten minutes of shape building we all gather together and each team leads the whole group to their "shape territory" to help their friends find the hidden shapes there.

It is delightful to see the different ways each group builds their shapes. Some are of sticks and leaves, some are hidden in the trees, and others are carefully laid out on the forest floor.

Meeting Common Core State Standards at the beach!

Identify and describe shapes.

CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.K.G.A.1 Describe objects in the environment using names of shapes, and describe the relative positions of these objects using terms such as above, below, beside, in front of, behind, and next to.

CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.K.G.A.2 Correctly name shapes regardless of their orientations or overall size.

CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.K.G.A.3 Identify shapes as two-dimensional (lying in a plane, "flat") or three-dimensional ("solid").

Analyze, compare, create, and compose shapes.

CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.K.G.B.4 Analyze and compare two- and three-dimensional shapes, in different sizes and orientations, using informal language to describe their similarities, differences, parts (e.g., number of sides and vertices/"corners") and other attributes (e.g., having sides of equal length).

CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.K.G.B.5 Model shapes in the world by building shapes from components (e.g., sticks and clay balls) and drawing shapes.

CCSS.MATH.CONTENT.K.G.B.6 Compose simple shapes to form larger shapes. For example, "Can you join these two triangles with full sides touching to make a rectangle?"

CCSS from http://www.corestandards.org/