Exploring Shapes in Reception!

This week, Reception have been busy exploring the wonderful world of 2D shapes! We began by going on exciting shape hunts around the school and playground, looking closely at our environment to discover shapes hidden in everyday objects. The children enjoyed spotting circles, squares, triangles, rectangles and many more shapes, proudly sharing their discoveries with their friends.

Throughout our learning, we have been developing our mathematical vocabulary, encouraging the children to describe shapes using words such as sides, straight, curved, round, equal, longer and shorter. We encouraged the children to think more deeply about how they recognised different shapes, asking questions such as “How do you know it’s a triangle?” and “What makes this shape different from that one?” The children explored the properties of shapes by counting and comparing their sides and corners, discovering that shapes can still be recognised even when they are turned or positioned differently.

We then challenged the children to create their own shapes using different objects and materials found around the classroom and playground. They also explored how shapes could be rotated, arranged and combined to create pictures and representations of familiar objects. They showed wonderful creativity, critical thinking and problem-solving skills as they experimented with different materials and explained their ideas.

As part of Black History Month, we explored the work of Alma Thomas, an African American artist known for her beautiful, colourful abstract paintings. We looked at how she used repeated shapes, vibrant colours and brushstrokes to create her artwork. Inspired by her creativity, we recreated our own colourful masterpieces using paper and paint, experimenting with shapes, colours and patterns.

It has been a fantastic week of exploring, creating and discovering shapes all around us, while developing our mathematical understanding, creativity and confidence in explaining our thinking!

By Dionne Tyghter

Reception Turtles Class Teacher