Lesson Reflection: Shapes

We were working on 3D shapes today, so I brought a bag of shapes that I found from home and sort them with the students. They were excited, because they found some of the things hilarious. I think that when they see the connections between things they learn in school and the real world, they would enjoy it better. It is important to show them that Mathematics is all around us, and is essential to our everyday living.

After sorting the shapes, I told them that I would give each group a set of shapes, and they would build a structure together. I let them know that I wanted them to pay attention to the characteristics of the shapes, such as why the cone cannot stand on its pointed end. I gave them sufficient time to build and break a few structures. At the beginning, some groups had trouble cooperating. They each grabbed a few pieces and argued over who took more. I let some of them resolve on their own, and I encouraged one group to work together to build one single unit. They all ended up working with each other. I think that if they see the other groups cooperating and doing well together, then they would have the motivation to do that as well. Most of the students in this class are good at teamwork, so the more independent students also benefit from that.

I saw that they had a lot of fun building the structures. I took pictures of their groups and the buildings that they built, and they found that fascinating as well. Some students were even more motivated after I took pictures of them, because they wanted to make more structures so I would take more pictures of them. However, I only took one picture of each group for the time being.

After that, I asked them to go back to the carpet and share what they have found about the shapes. I guided them, and some of them made really good observations. We also talked about why certain objects are made in certain shapes. For example, ice-cream cones are cone-shaped because it is easy to hold. A tissue box is not made in a sphere shape because it will roll. I wanted them to start thinking about these things, so that they can make more sense of the world around them.

Overall, I think the lesson went pretty well. They had fun while they were learning, and I had fun while I was learning from them too. Hopefully, I will feel even more comfortable doing my next math lesson!