Chippewa Valley Schools Learning Activity

 

 

 


TITLE:  Shapes Shapes Everywhere

 

CURRICULUM: Math, Language Arts

and Technology                                   (Click here for a sample book cover-circle) 

(Click here for a sample book cover-square)

                                                                                                                (Click here for a preview)

GRADE LEVEL: Kindergarten                                                        (Click her for the template)

 

 

PURPOSE: The students will identify characteristics of familiar shapes and identify these shapes in the physical world.

 

CVS STANDARDS/BENCHMARKS:

MATHEMATICS

II.1 Shape and Shape Relationships:  Develop spatial sense, use shape as an analytic and descriptive tool, identify characteristics and define shapes, identify properties and describe relationships among shapes.

q       II.1.2 Describe the attributes of familiar shapes

q       II.1.1 Recognize, name, compare, sort and classify familiar shapes

q       II.1.5 Explore ways to combine, and transform shapes

q       II.1.7 Use shape, shape properties, and shape relationships to describe the physical world and to solve problems

LANGUAGE ARTS

I.2 Write with Clarity:  Students will demonstrate language in a written form.

q       I.2.1 Write with developing awareness of letter/sound relationships in a variety of activities.

 

NETS STANDARDS/PERFORMANCE INDICATORS:

1.1 Basic Operations:  Use input devices and output device to successfully operate computers.

2.5 Social, Ethical, and Human Issues:  Work cooperatively and collaboratively with peers, family members, and others when using technology in the classroom.

 3.9 Technology Productivity Tools:  Use technology resources (e.g., puzzles logical thinking programs, writing tools, digital camera, drawing tools) for problem solving, communication, and illustration of thoughts, ideas, and stories.

 

 

DESCRIPTION:

Using a Kid Pix template the students will create pages to show circles, squares, and triangles seen in the physical world.  Using the alphabet stamps, the students will complete the sentence:  A _______ is a circle.  Then the students will draw a circle and illustrate.  Next the students will use the Kid Pix tools to color and add details.  Last, the students will use the typewriter tool to type their name.   The students can print out their work and the pages can be gathered to form individual books or class books.  An additional activity may be to create a class or individual slide shows to show the students’ work.

 

 

PREPARATION:

The students will need to have prior knowledge of shapes.  Literature relating to shapes would be very helpful for the students to be creative in choosing their circle, square, or triangle object.  The students will need to have had many experiences in the computer lab practicing drawing shapes, using the letter stamps, and typewriter tools in Kid Pix.  The students will also need to know how to paint using the paint can and how to add background to their pictures. The students who piloted this lesson practiced in the lab for several weeks and then completed their final copies in the classroom where a colored printer was available.  The students did their best work when they knew in advance the object that they would be creating.  Listed below are the directions for creating the template in Kid Pix.  This will need to be saved to the I: drive.  Students will need to be taught how open a Kid Pix picture and find the I: drive.

 

 

 

ACTIVITIES

Creating a template in Kid Pix

  1. Log on as a teacher and open Kid Pix.
  2. Click on File/Printer Setup.  Click on the Setup button and choose Landscape.  This will make the student page print out much larger. Click on OK. 
  3. Click on the Typewriter tool to create a text box.  Click on the bottom of your paper. Type “A _________is a circle.” You can adjust the text box by dragging the red circles.  You can move the box by clicking on the center of the box and dragging it to where you want it to be.  (You will see a little white hand appear when you click and drag.)
  4. At the bottom of the page you can select the font and letter size.
  5. When you have completed all of your text, click on Toolbox from the top menu.  Click on Paint Text to Background.  From here you will want to choose Paint All Text Boxes. Click Ok.
  6. Now you will want to go to File/Save a Picture.
  7. You will want to go to the pull down menu on drives and choose I: 
  8. In the box above you will want to double click on Students.
  9. Give your template a file name and click on OK.  (I called mine “circle”.  You have a limit of eight letters.)
  10. The file is now saved to a directory the students can open but will not be able to change.

 

Having the students open the Kid Pix template

  1. Have the students log on and open Kid Pix.
  2. Have the students click on File and then Open a Picture
  3. When the pop up screen appears, have the students click on the little triangle located next to drives and have the students locate the letter I: and click on it.  A list of File Names will appear along with a preview window.  Have the students click on the correct file and check to see if it appears in the preview window.  Last, have the students click OK.
  4. The template will now be opened on the screen.

 

 

Having the students use the Shape template

1.        Once the students have opened the template in Kid Pix the students can then click on the Alphabet Stamp tool and begin stamping on the line to finish the sentence “A _______is a circle.”  The students can use their letter sounds to stamp as much of the word as they can.

  1. Next the students can click on the Circle tool and create a circle that will be part of their picture.  It helps to demonstrate to the students how to make the circle by drawing on a diagonal or making the letter “L”.  (For a perfect circle the students can hold down the shift key.)
  2. After the students have completed their picture, the students may want to color the background.  This can be done by clicking on the Paint Can tool and choosing a color from the color palette.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  1.  The students can then click on the background and paint their picture.  The students can also use this tool to paint objects on their picture. (Make sure the students do not leave any openings in their lines, or the paint will run into the rest of the picture.)
  2. Last, you can have the students click on the Typewriter tool and click on the screen to type their name.  Or, the students can use the Alphabet Stamps to stamp their names.

 

Saving and Printing the student work

  1. If you have access to a color printer the students can simply choose File/Print and print their activity sheets.
  2. If the color printer is not the default printer, the students will need to go to File/Printer Setup and click on the right printer and then click OK.  They will then need to go to File/Print.
  3. If the computers are not networked to the color laser printer, you will need to save each of the students’ pages.

a.   First go to the File menu and click on Save a Picture.

b. Go to the I: drive

c.  Double click on the Shared folder

d. Type a file name on the line.  Each file name should be different to help you keep track of the printing. Click OK.

 

4.        Once you have saved all of the students’ pages you will need to print.  You will need to be at a computer that is linked to the color laser printer.

a.         Log on as a teacher.

b.       Open Kid Pix

c.        Go to the File Menu and click on Open a Picture (You will want to go to the I: drive and double click on the Shared folder to find the pictures.)

d.       Choose a picture and click OK.  (You should now see the picture on the screen.)

e.        Go to the File Menu and click on Printer Setup

f.         Choose the color laser printer you will be printing to and click on it and click OK

g.       Go to the File Menu and click on Print

h.       You will need to open each student picture before you print, but you will not have to go to printer setup.

 

Changing the Shape

The students can repeat this activity for squares and triangles.  You can create each of the templates and place them in the shared folder. (I: drive).  The students can use the Square tool to create the square and create a picture out of it.  For the triangle, the students can use the Straight line tool and draw three separate lines that connect into a triangle.

 

 

TOOLS AND RESOURCES:

Kid Pix

Here is a list of books that you may find useful when introducing shapes:

Title

Author

Pancakes, Crackers, and Pizza

Marjorie Eberts

Chester and Max Colors and Shapes

Jacqueline Fortey

Shapes

David Kirkby

Circles, Triangles, and Squares

Tana Hoban

There’s a Square

Mary Serfozo

When a Line Bends… A Shape Begins

Rhonda Gowler Greene

Shape Space

Cathryn Falwell

 

 

 

ASSESSMENT:

After the students have completed their activity page, you are going to want to check to if the students can correctly identify the shape and find an object that is that shape. You will want the students to describe the shape in terms of number of sides and corners.  Last, you will want to assess how well the students were able to identify beginning and ending sounds in the words they were spelling.

 

 

CREDITS:

This lesson was created by:

 

Angela Miller

Technology Curriculum Consultant

Chippewa Valley Schools

19120 Cass Avenue

Clinton Twp. MI 48038

amiller@cvs.k12.mi.us

 

 

 

COMMENTS:

Nancy Tisci’s kindergartners at Cheyenne piloted this lesson.  The students practiced the same lesson for several weeks before we printed their final copy.

 

 

 

PREREQUISITES:

(See Preparation)