NURSERY 1 (born in 2016)

Shapes are very noticeable attributes of the world around us. These are recognizable characteristics that encourages children to define and organize the diverse world around them. Therefore, shapes are often one of the first concepts taught in preschool.
Children who can distinguish between shapes are better equipped to notice the differences between letters and numerals.

Learning to identify different shape hones your child’s ability to observe and compare for similarities and differences, by focusing on specific characteristics. Recognizing shapes involves distinguishing among shapes and associating shapes with shape names.

This week, we look at standard shapes (square, circle, triangle, rectangle) by exploring their sides, corners and formation. We then make the connection by relating the shapes learnt to everyday objects. With this understanding, your child is taught how to organise/sort a given set of objects into different groups, based on the attributes of shape and colour respectively.

Lastly, children are engaged to make their own shape stamps, to create repeating sequence patterns using different shape and colour combinations.

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NURSERY 2 (born in 2015)

Using building blocks to create 3D figures encourages creativity and self-expression. Children love using blocks to build and bring their imaginative objects to live. Working with 3D blocks also develops motor, spatial, problem-solving and inter-personal skills.

During play, your child engages in prediction and comparison making - of balance and stability as well as cause-and-effect of different shape pieces and/or structural configurations. This allows children to explore the concepts of science and engineering through the process of discovery and experimental play.

To train spatial visualisation and memory, teams will be required to memorise and re-create a set of structures, while practicing communication and social skills. Each child is then guided to piece a narrative together, detailing the build process, structures and respective functions.
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We will also use this opportunity to revisit some positional keywords (i.e. top, bottom, in front, behind) and discuss the characteristics (i.e. sides/corners/faces) of basic 3D shapes (cube, cuboid, prism, cylinder).

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KINDERGARTEN 1 (born in 2014)

Building upon last week’s concept of sorting objects, children explore multiple possibilities in which a given set of shapes can be sorted – by colour, size or shape. Through this process, your child learns how to identify and verbally describe specific shapes based on attributes.

Upon sorting (i.e. grouping by shapes - triangles vs squares), he/she will discover that not all triangles within a group look the same. Here, your child will explore several sub-types of triangles (i.e. isosceles, equilateral & right-angle), learning how to identify, distinguish and create each one of them. Studying triangles in-depth makes it easier to appreciate the role of triangles in daily life and the understanding of abstract spatial concepts and trigonometry functions in the later stages of mathematical learning.

Children will then learn more about shapes through picture puzzles. Starting with a generic picture puzzle, children are engaged to work as a team, training social, cognitive problem-solving, spatial-visualisation and motor skills. Finally, as a precursor to shape division and shape formation (a concept that will be directly tested at the primary school level), your child will be tasked to create his/her own picture puzzles by cutting up a triangular and rectangular picture into small pieces.

Working on picture puzzles can train a multitude of skills – such as mental visualisation/rotation (using smaller pieces and working towards a big picture), hand-eye coordination (rotating individual pieces appropriately until they fit), problem-solving / observation (looking out for clues / defining characteristics in each piece) as well as patience (completing the puzzle in a single sitting). Therefore, consistence exposure to picture puzzles will definitely prove beneficial to your child.

 

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KINDERGARTEN 2 (born in 2013)

Spatial intelligence is the ability to generate, retain, retrieve and transform visual images in space. This lesson seeks to integrate the two concepts of spatial awareness and shape composition, engaging both your child’s analytical and creative capabilities.
Using a puzzle comprising 8 exact triangles pieces, children learn to form a range of different shapes using these triangle shapes as the building block.

Tasked to make their own puzzle, your child will cut square shapes into smaller pieces. Taking an exploratory approach, your child will discover various ways in which the same (larger) shape can be broken down into different (smaller) shape combinations (i.e. cutting a square in half results in either 2 rectangles or 2 triangles).

Using the same pieces, your child will then attempt to reconstruct the original square shape (reverse thinking) and be encouraged to configure new shapes (flexible thinking).

Ultimately, we hope to reinforce the concept of part-part-whole relationships as your child works from both the detail orientated and big-picture perspectives.

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Next LESSON'S focus:
THINKING WITH WORDS