Lesson 4

The purpose of this warm-up is to elicit the idea that students can use dots to draw shapes and describe their attributes, which will be useful when students draw shapes in a later activity.

• Groups of 2
• Display the image.
• “What do you notice? What do you wonder?”
• 1 minute: quiet think time

• “Discuss your thinking with your partner.”
• 1 minute: partner discussion
• Share and record responses.

• “How did the dots help you describe the shapes in this image?” (The dots helped me count the corners. I could see the lines that connected the dots.)
• “How do you think the dots would help you draw your own shapes?” (They might keep the lines straight. They might help me plan where to start my shape. I can just connect the dots to make a shape.)

The purpose of this activity is for students to draw shapes. Students pick a shape card, draw it on dot paper, and describe the shape. While students are working, record the words and phrases they used to describe their shapes on a chart. During the synthesis, students look at the language being used to describe shapes. They add or replace language and look for similarities in the words and phrases listed. When students begin to match the names of shapes to words and phrases that describe their defining attributes, they begin to distinguish between the defining and non-defining attributes of the shape categories they know (MP6).

This activity uses MLR2 Collect and Display. Advances: conversing, reading, writing

• Each group of 2 needs the Flat Shape Cards from a previous lesson.

• Groups of 2
• Give each group a set of shape cards and two pieces of dot paper.

• “Pick one of the shape cards. Each partner draws the shape on their dot paper. Share your drawing and take turns describing the shape.”
• 6 minutes: partner work time

MLR2 Collect and Display

• Circulate, listen for, and collect the language students use to describe the shapes that they draw. Listen for: triangle, square, rectangle, hexagon, edges, sides, corners, and vertices.
• Record students’ words and phrases on a visual display and update it throughout the lesson.

If students draw shapes that are not closed, consider asking:

• “How did you use the dots to help you draw your shape?”
• “Circle three dots you can use to make your triangle. What do you need to do now to make the triangle?”

• “While you were describing your shapes, I wrote down some of the words and phrases I heard.”
• Read the words from the chart or invite students to read along.
• “Are there any other words or phrases that are important to include on our display?”
• As students share responses, update the display by adding (or replacing) language and drawing diagrams.
• If needed, ask: “How can we group some of the words and phrases that are written on the chart?” (Triangle, three corners, three sides)
• Record responses and leave them displayed throughout the unit.

The purpose of this activity is for students to learn stage 1 of the How Are They the Same center. Students lay six shape cards face up. One student picks two cards that have an attribute in common.  All students draw a shape that has a shared attribute with the two shapes. Students get a point if they draw a shape that no other student drew. It is possible that students will draw a shape with a different shared attribute than what the original student chose. This can be an interesting discussion for students to have.

• Each group of 4 needs a set of Flat Shape Cards from the previous activity.

• Groups of 4
• Give each group a set of flat shape cards and multiple copies of dot paper.
• “We are going to learn a new center called How Are They the Same? Let’s play one round together.”
• Display six shape cards.
• “You will start by laying out six shape cards. Then one person in your group chooses two shapes that are the same in some way. They show everyone in the group the shapes they chose.”
• Demonstrate choosing two shapes and showing them to the class.
• “Then the other group members draw a different shape that is also the same in some way as the two shapes that were chosen. You can do that now. Draw a shape that is the same as these two shapes in some way.”
• 1 minute: independent work time
• “Finally, everyone shares the shapes they drew and what they have in common with the first two shapes chosen.”
•  3 minutes: whole-class discussion
• “You earn 1 point if you draw a shape that nobody else drew.”

• “Now you will play with your group.”
• 8 minutes: small-group work time
• Monitor for a group that draws shapes with different attributes in common. For example, the first two shapes chosen both have four sides and are shaded in. Someone in the group draws another four-sided shape, while someone else draws a three-sided shape that is shaded in.

• Invite previously identified groups to share.

The purpose of this activity is for students to choose from activities that offer practice adding and subtracting within 10 or 20. Students choose from any stage of previously introduced centers.

• Capture Squares
• Compare
• How Close

• Gather materials from previous centers:
  • Capture Squares, Stages 1 and 2
  • Compare, Stage 1
  • How Close, Stages 1-3

• Groups of 2
• “Now you are going to choose from centers we have already learned.”
• Display the center choices in the student book.
• “Think about what you would like to do.”
• 30 seconds: quiet think time

• Invite students to work at the center of their choice. 
• 10 minutes: center work time

• “We all worked on adding and subtracting numbers in our centers today. What was the best part of your center work today?”