Parenting Tips

Shapes are in everything. From buildings to furniture, shapes are put together to create other shapes. Once kids learn about their shapes, they will begin to see them everywhere. Here are five ways in which you can teach a child to recognize their shapes:

1. The first way to teach children about shapes is through visual learning. When I was young I had a toy with shapes cut out of it. It also came with other shapes that were supposed to fit into the holes. Over time this idea has evolved into a round ball with shapes cut out of it. The shape pieces are made of plastic instead of wood, but the concept is still the same.

As the child plays with each shape, call out the name of the shape. They will repeat it. The more they play they will learn to recognize the shapes.

2. This same toy can also be used for the second way to teach shapes. This teaching involves fitting the shapes into the holes. Each shape has its own space on the ball. A round piece will not fit into a square hole. Now that they can name the shapes, they must learn how to match shapes with shapes. Show them this by holding the shapes piece next to the proper hole and then dropping it in.

3. Using posters is another way to teach shapes. These posters can be purchased from a toy store or you can use a poster board and create your own. If you use your own, create animals, houses, automobiles, and trees using different shapes. This helps children begin to see the shapes within the main shape. For example, a house is made up of a rectangular frame or a square frame with square windows. Some windows are round like the doorknob. There are many shapes to see.

4. The fourth method is to have a shape scavenger hunt. This teaches children to identify shapes in their home. Give a child a shape from your bag of shapes. Ask them to find other shapes like that one around the house. Count the number of shapes they are able to locate. If they can see the shapes hidden in your home, they can identify them elsewhere.

5. Use educational tapes and DVD’s to teach shapes. Kids like the bright colors and talking animals portrayed on these shows. The animals ask the audience children if they see a particular shape. Your child can walk up to the television and point to the shapes they see. After a few minutes, the animals will identify the right shape and offer encouragement for those that found it.

You’ll likely be surprised by your child when they learn their basic shapes. They will see the car wheels as circles and the car as a rectangle (more or less). Your handclaps will reinforce their learning.