Children can identify these shapes in the beautiful illustrations, while also learning about the properties of shapes-that their size and orientation can vary, but they are still the same shape. Elephants march around in a circle, horses make a triangle, monkeys make a square, and bears make a rectangle. Circus Shapes. New York: HarperCollins.Ī family encounters different shapes when they spend a day at the circus. View the DREME storybook guide based on Mice on Ice.When Albert tries to join his friends, he’s too clumsy to make the shapes properly and creates general havoc! But eventually, helped by pillows (yes, pillows!), he does manage to skate a rectangle. Children learn not only the names of the shapes, but also the properties that define them. His friends make different shapes-triangles, squares, and others-as they skate around the ice. New York: Kane Press.Īlbert is a clumsy mouse who goes ice skating with friends one day. View the DREME storybook guide based on Albert is Not Scared.As the story progresses, children learn many words for directions and positions. Albert is Not Scared. New York: The Kane Press.Īctually, Albert the mouse is frightened by rides at the “amousement” park-rides that go up and down, left and right, and around and around. View the DREME storybook guide based on Have You Seen My Monster?.From the octagons on the merry-go-round to the hexagons on the fun house, children will enjoy spotting the shapes on each page. As she walks through the fair trying to find him, she sees different shapes all around her. Have You Seen My Monster? Somerville, Massachusetts: Candlewick Press.Ī little girl loses her monster at the fair. View the DREME storybook guide based on Inside, Outside, Upside Down.Children learn spatial words when the box goes outside, falls off the truck, and Brother Bear lands right side up. In this simple story, Brother Bear gets in a box that gets turned upside down, taken outside, and put on a truck. We recommend the following picture books for opportunities they provide to bond, to enjoy, and to stimulate the child’s understanding of shapes and space.īerenstain, S. Five Great Picture Books to Learn About Shape and Space Some math picture books include ideas about space and use spatial vocabulary in the text, such as inside, outside, up, down, left, and right. These words are often closely connected to what is happening in the illustration, helping children make the connection between spatial language and the direction or location it references. If a picture book does not present shapes in various positions and sizes, you can rotate the pages and ask, Is this still a triangle? How do you know? When reading shape books, you can also talk about the characteristics of the shapes: How many sides does the square have? How many sides does the triangle have? Which one has more sides?
By seeing, manipulating, drawing, and talking about different types of triangles, children develop spatial reasoning skills such as mental rotation, visual spatial reasoning, and spatial vocabulary. They must learn that they can rotate a triangle and enlarge or shrink the sides and it will remain a triangle. For example, if they only see isosceles triangles (with two longer sides and one short base) standing upright on a horizontal base, children might not recognize a rotated triangle or one with three unequal sides. Without variety and flexibility, children can develop rigid definitions. Young children need many experiences with a variety of shapes so that they develop a rich, flexible understanding of shapes. Picture books specifically dedicated to shape should show illustrations of different examples of the same shape, and describe the characteristics of shapes in the text. But young children can also learn these foundational math concepts from the picture books parents and teachers read to them. When we think of how young children learn about shapes and spatial reasoning, we most often think of blocks and puzzles.
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