Shape Sorting

To help students recognize the unique attributes of 2D shapes, they worked in small groups to sort various shapes in examples and non-examples. Sorting this way helps students justify why they made their sorting choices and teaches them to use content specific vocabulary to defend their choices. For example, as I walked around monitoring the students' sorting, the students would tell me that they knew which were triangles because it had three sides and three vertices and the other shapes (such as diamonds, rectangles, etc.) did not. We continued this process through several shape sorts.