FM.J.82 MATCHES SHAPES, CHOICE OF 3

Children learn to recognise shapes in the same way as they learn to recognise colours and many other concepts – that is, first by matching them, and then by selecting them. Most children will, in time, name the shapes, but once they can select, they show that they know the names, even if they cannot yet say them.

This item is concerned with the first step in the process of learning shapes – matching. If you have a formboard (FM.H.67, FM.H.68, FM.H.69) your child will already be familiar with matching shapes.

Materials are easily made at home. Using stiff cardboard, cut out 3 of each shape – circles, squares and triangles. Make your shapes quite large. We have also cut shapes from vinyl and from wallpaper – or a handyperson might make you some wooden ones. Commercially available sets, called ‘attribute blocks’, have many useful applications (they come in different sizes as well) but their expense makes them a luxury.

How to Assess

Materials: 3 triangles, 3 squares and 3 circles. Make sure that they are either all the same colour, or a range of different colours. Avoid having all squares blue, all the circles yellow and all the triangles red (for instance) or you won’t know whether your child is matching by shape or colour. 3 shallow dishes.

Method: Place the 3 dishes in front of your child, and place one shape in each dish. Hold up a circle. Say ‘I’m putting the circle with the circle’. Do so. Now give your child another shape and say ‘Put the … with the .. .’. Repeat for each remaining shape.

Score plus if your child matches all the remaining shapes correctly.

How to Teach

Use the same method as that described for FM.I.60 (matches identical objects). Refer also to the description of the Match-to-Sample game. If your child has difficulty matching 3 shapes, work with just 2 as an intermediate step, and then introduce the third.

Playtime and Round-the-house Activities

Use all the opportunities that arise to talk about shapes in your environment. Encourage your child to look, and to trace out shapes with his fingers. Bring out your posting box and shape puzzles again. Cut sandwiches and cookies into different shapes, and encourage him to do this himself with cookie cutters and playdough. Cut paper into different shapes for artwork; you could help to paste shapes onto or near matching shapes that you have drawn on his paper.

Remembering and Extending

This skill is directly extended in FM.J.108, where your child will learn to select shapes. You can progress through the in-between steps in the Match-to-Sample game as you teach other skills from this sequence, or you can leave shapes aside for a little while, maintaining with occasional practice.