Playing with 2D Shape

Giving children chance to 'play around' with two-dimensional shapes gives them the freedom to explore spatial properties for themselves, thereby developing their understanding in a meaningful way. These activities offer contexts in which children can engage in this 'play'.

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Favourite

Matching Triangles

Age

5 to 7

Challenge level

Can you sort these triangles into three different families and explain how you did it?

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Let's Investigate Triangles

Age

5 to 7

Challenge level

Vincent and Tara are making triangles with the class construction set. They have a pile of strips of different lengths. How many different triangles can they make?

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Sorting Logic Blocks

Age

5 to 11

Challenge level

This activity focuses on similarities and differences between shapes.

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Transformations on a Pegboard

Age

7 to 11

Challenge level

How would you move the bands on the pegboard to alter these shapes?

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Stringy Quads

Age

7 to 11

Challenge level

This practical problem challenges you to make quadrilaterals with a loop of string. You'll need some friends to help!

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Stick images

Age

7 to 14

Challenge level

This task requires learners to explain and help others, asking and answering questions.

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Geometric thinking - teacher articles

Age

3 to 11

This series of three articles discusses the development of geometric thinking.

More activities with 2-d shape for younger children, and 3-d shapes for older.

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Favourite

Repeating Patterns

Age

5 to 7

Challenge level

Try continuing these patterns made from triangles. Can you create your own repeating pattern?

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Mrs Trimmer's String

Age

5 to 7

Challenge level

Can you help the children in Mrs Trimmer's class make different shapes out of a loop of string?

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Favourite

Triangle Animals

Age

5 to 7

Challenge level

How many different ways can you find to join three equilateral triangles together? Can you convince us that you have found them all?

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Animated Triangles

Age

5 to 7

Challenge level

Watch this "Notes on a Triangle" film. Can you recreate parts of the film using cut-out triangles?

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Triangle Edges

Age

5 to 7

Challenge level

How many triangles can you make using sticks that are 3cm, 4cm and 5cm long?

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Cutting Corners

Age

7 to 11

Challenge level

Can you make the most extraordinary, the most amazing, the most unusual patterns/designs from these triangles which are made in a special way?

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Favourite

Egyptian Rope

Age

7 to 11

Challenge level

The ancient Egyptians were said to make right-angled triangles using a rope with twelve equal sections divided by knots. What other triangles could you make if you had a rope like this?

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Overlapping Again

Age

7 to 11

Challenge level

What shape is the overlap when you slide one of these shapes half way across another? Can you picture it in your head? Use the interactivity to check your visualisation.

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Quadrilaterals

Age

7 to 11

Challenge level

How many DIFFERENT quadrilaterals can be made by joining the dots on the 8-point circle?

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Triangle Pin-Down

Age

7 to 11

Challenge level

Use the interactivity to investigate what kinds of triangles can be drawn on peg boards with different numbers of pegs.

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Favourite

What shape?

Age

7 to 14

Challenge level

This task develops spatial reasoning skills. By framing and asking questions a member of the team has to find out what mathematical object they have chosen.

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Shaping Up with Tessellations

This article describes the scope for practical exploration of tessellations both in and out of the classroom. It seems a golden opportunity to link art with maths, allowing the creative side of your children to take over.

Or search by topic

Number and algebra

Geometry and measure

Probability and statistics

Working mathematically

Advanced mathematics

For younger learners

Playing with 2D Shape

Matching Triangles

Let's Investigate Triangles

Sorting Logic Blocks

Transformations on a Pegboard

Stringy Quads

Stick images

Geometric thinking - teacher articles

Repeating Patterns

Mrs Trimmer's String

Triangle Animals

Animated Triangles

Triangle Edges

Cutting Corners

Egyptian Rope

Overlapping Again

Quadrilaterals

Triangle Pin-Down

What shape?

Shaping Up with Tessellations