Teaching 2D shapes is usually on the agenda during back to school time in kindergarten. While there’s no doubt that learning to recognize and name shapes is essential, it can be a little tricky for our little guys to keep them straight. If you’re running into this dilemma at the beginning of the year, it might be time for a new approach! Come along to check out the back to school shape activities I’m using in my room!
Back to School Shape Activities Everyone Will Love
I am always looking for fun and interactive ways to teach students about 2D shapes and to help build shape recognition skills. This is especially true during the back to school season! Since I teach kindergarten, many of the students who come to me don’t have any past experience with shapes. Since this will be their very first opportunity to learn about shapes, it’s always my goal to make it fun and engaging!
What I mean by this is that I want the learning to be playful and hands-on as they learn and explore. Endless worksheets won’t catch their eye, but you know what will? GAMES! My students love games and over the years I have learned that these are the best way to teach just about anything! This is definitely true when it comes to shapes!
With this in mind, I came up with some back to school shape activities for my kids to use that I knew would make learning more fun. The games I created are perfect for individual math centers and even partner games! They work really well in small groups too if you’re looking for a way to teach new shapes in a fun way. So it’s time to put away those flashcards, and tracing worksheets and have some fun with shapes this year!
My Favorite Back to School Shape Activities & Games
Inside my Back to School Shapes Activities Resource, you’ll find a ton of fun and engaging games to practice shapes with your kiddos. All together, there are 13 different games to play! The best thing about these back to school shape activities is that your students won’t grow tired of them. Use them as morning tub activities, partner games, math centers, and more to help master 2D shapes! Let’s take a closer look at each game and how it’s played!
1. Match It Up
This first game is a great way to start introducing shapes to students. To play, they will use snap cubes and look at the code on the side of their page, find the shape on the mat that matches, and cover it up with the snap cube. They just keep finding and matching the shapes until the mat is filled!
This is perfect for independent practice during math centers and also works really well as a math warm-up or morning tub activity. And what kids don’t love using snap cubes? It’s a win-win!
2. Clip Cards
Next up, in my list of back to school shape activities, I’ve got a multitasking game! At the beginning of the school year, we try to squeeze in as much fine motor practice as we can. Those little hands always need activities to strengthen their muscles. Clothespins are perfect for students to practice squeezing to open and close the clothespin.
Students will look at the shape on the card, find the matching shape on the side, and clip the clothespin to the matching shape! This back to school shape game is perfect for center time. Just laminate these cards and give kiddos a bucket of clothes pins for interactive practice made simple.
3. Shape Discrimination Cards
Ok, please tell me I’m not the only one with a crazy huge mini-eraser collection? And does anyone actually use them to erase with?! In my room, that’s certainly not the case! Anyway, my kids get so excited when I pull out the mini erasers and these task cards. It quickly becomes one of their favorite math stations! They love the visual appeal, and I love that this activity asks them to carefully look over each card to find the target shape.
To use, students will look at the shape in the middle, then find all of the matching shapes around the edge and cover them up with a mini eraser to mark all of the matching shapes! This activity is perfect for center time or when you’re getting settled in for the morning.
4. Puzzle Cards
Puzzles are a classroom favorite in kindergarten! Kiddos love solving them and I love how simple and easy they are to use. The best part, though is that they are self-checking! Students will look at the shape, find the matching school supply shape, and put the pieces together. If the puzzle pieces fit, they make a match, if not, they keep looking for the correct matching shape!
This activity is perfect for independent practice in centers. I also like to put sets of these cards in plastic photo boxes for fast finishers. Students will select a task card box, take it to a table, and get to work!
5. Count the Shapes
Want to sneak in some counting practice with your back to school shape activities? This is a great way to combine shape practice and 1 to 1 correspondence counting. Every child gets a counting mat. There are 2 options provided, so you can decide if you want to use full color or black and white. The black and white sheets come in handy for a no-prep activity, while the color ones are perfect to laminate or use with dry-erase sleeves.
To use, students will look at all the mixed-up shapes in the box, count each shape, and write the number in the box. I love that this activity serves a dual purpose of identifying shapes and counting. Not to mention, they also get some practice with numeral formation as well!
6. Spin and Color
My kids think that it is magical that you can make a spinner from just a paper clip and a pencil! Teacher magic for the win! I love that teaching them to make and use a spinner requires some fine motor practice as well. Students must focus to make it work! Our magical spinners come in handy for this next back to school shape activity.
In this one, students will spin a shape on the spinner, find the matching shape in the box, and color it. They will keep spinning and coloring until they have colored all of the shapes. When they’re finished, they count up how many shapes of each they have. Perfect for an independent math center and even as a homework assignment!
7. Color by Code
Do you use color by code activities in your classroom? They’re one of my favorites, which is why I always include them when planning my back to school shape activities. I love that they’re versatile, low-prep, and offer a way to practice 2D shapes that’s appealing to students.
There are two different versions of this color by code activity, beginner and advanced. Having both options comes in handy as we differentiate throughout the month. Everyone might start with the beginner pages, and then as students progress, I will give them the more challenging option. To use, students will look at the code on the side, find the matching shapes in the picture, and color each spot to reveal the mystery image! The fun back to school pictures are always a hit!
8. Dominoes
I am always so surprised at home many kids have never played dominoes. I used to love playing as a child, so I decided to incorporate this game in our back to school shapes activities. If you’re new to this game, don’t worry – it’s simple! Students will look at each domino piece and try to match the shapes by making different domino trains. This continues until all of the dominoes are used up!
This is a great partner game or an independent work activity. Once students learn how to play this game, it’s always a favorite! Because of this, I recommend printing the dominoes on cardstock and laminating them for durability. This way you can use them again and again throughout the first month of school.
9. Count and Graph
This is another great activity to introduce multiple math skills. Graphing can feel a little advanced, but honestly, this activity is one of the best you can use with your primary students! It helps them understand 1 to 1 correspondence and collecting data. Not to mention, they’ll get more practice with identifying 2D shapes!
Students will pick one of the shapes and count how many they see in the box. They will then color in the graph to show how many they counted. For students just getting started, I have them count, color, and graph one item at a time. This helps reduce overwhelm and shows them that 1 shape represents 1 square on their graph. After, they can look at the graph to compare and see which ones had more or less.
10. Roll and Cover
So, remember that mini-eraser obsession that I said I may have? Yup, another great activity to use those with! Roll and cover is a classroom favorite! Students will roll the dice, find the matching shape on their mat, and cover it up with a fun mini eraser or any type of counter. They can keep rolling and coloring until they have covered all of the shapes on their board.
11. BUMP!
This is my kids’ favorite partner game! It’s always the first one picked when we start math centers. Students will each pick their color of snap cubes and grab 10 of them to use as markers. They will then take turns spinning a spinner and placing the cube on the matching shape. If they spin the same shape twice, they get to make a tower! But, if they spin a shape that their partner has a cube on, they can “bump their partner off the shape and claim it. But if there is a tower on it, then it cannot be bumped off. First person to use all of their cubes is the winner!
12. BINGO
Who doesn’t love BINGO?! As a teacher, I love that this activity can be used in both small groups and with my whole group at once. Plus, my kids love to play! Each student will get a BINGO board and when a shape is called they will cover it up on their board with a counter or, yup, you guessed it, a mini eraser! Told you I love those things! When they cover up shapes in a straight line then they can call out BINGO!
13. Spin & Graph
This one is a lot like the Count and Graph game, except students will spin a spinner, identify the shape they got, and then fill in the graph. They will continue spinning and graphing until one shape makes it to the top of the graph. I like to use this one as a low-prep center activity during back to school time. Kiddos can work independently while you work in small groups with others!
How to Use These Back to School Shape Activities
I usually use these back to school shape activities all month long so that students have plenty of time to explore each activity a few times to get a full understanding of the concept. We will play these throughout the day at different times each time to keep it fresh and fun. Sometimes they will be in math stations, then we may move them into morning bins or early finisher tubs. Often students will even ask to do them during free exploration centers! I love that using them in multiple ways means that my students will get lots of practice with these back-to-school shape activities!
If you’re looking for a super simple way to facilitate shape recognition this school year, don’t forget to check out these shape games in my TPT Shop! You can find all 13 games in my Back to School Shape Activities Resource. Prep them once and use them again and again with your students!
Looking for More?
If you’re looking for more fun math activities to try in your classroom, be sure to check out these posts!
- 5 Fun Shape Activities For Fall
- Back to School Counting Activities
- Fun Ways to Target Critical Thinking
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