Unit Overview
Content Area: Math
Unit Title:Geometry: Shapes and Their Attributes Unit:2
Target Course/Grade Level: Third Grade Timeline:November-January
Unit Summary: Students describe, analyze, and compare properties of two-dimensional shapes. They compare and classify shapes by their sides and angles, and connect these with definitions of shapes. Students also relate their fraction work to geometry by expressing the area of part of a shape as a unit fraction of the whole.
Primary interdisciplinary connections:Language Arts and Art
21st century themes and skills: Critical Thinking and Problem Solving, Communication and
Collaboration, Teamwork and Leadership, Creativity and Innovation
Standard 9.1: All students will demonstrate the creative, critical thinking, collaboration, and problemsolving skills needed to function successfully as both global citizens and workers in diverse ethnic and organizational cultures.
Strand: A. Critical Thinking and Problem Solving
C. Collaboration, Teamwork, and Leadership
D. Cross-Cultural Understanding and Interpersonal Communication
Content Statement:
9.1.4.A: The ability to recognize a problem and apply critical thinking and problem
solving skills to solve the problem is a lifelong skill that develops over time.
9.1.4.C: Collaboration and teamwork enable individuals or groups to achieve common
goals with greater efficiency.
9.1.4.D: Effective communication skills convey intended meaning to others and assist in
preventing misunderstandings.
Mathematical Practices:
3.MP.5 Use appropriate tools strategically.
3.MP.6 Attend to precision.
3.MP.7 Look for and make use of structure.
Learning Targets
Domain: Geometry
Cluster: Reason with shapes and their attributes.
Standard # / Standards
3.G.1 / Understand that shapes in different categories (eg. rhombuses, rectangles, and others) may share attributes (eg. having four sides), and that the shared attributes can define a larger category (eg. quadrilaterals). Recognize rhombuses, rectangles, and squares as examples of quadrilaterals, and draw examples of quadrilaterals that do not belong to any of these subcategories.
3.G.2 / Partition shapes into parts with equal areas. Express the area of each part as a unit fraction of the whole. For example, partition a shape into 4 parts with equal area, and describe the area of each part as ¼ of the area of the shape.
CPI# / Cumulative Progress Indicator (CPI)
9.1.4.A.5: / Apply critical thinking and problem-solving skills in a classroom and family setting.
9.1.4.C.1: / Practice collaborative skills in groups, and explain how these skills assist in
completing tasks in different settings such as home, play or school.
9.1.4.D.1: / Use effective oral and written communication in face to face and online interactions and when presenting to an audience.
Unit Essential Questions
  • How can objects be represented and compared using geometric attributes?
  • How can you identify and describe shapes?
  • How do you divide a shape into equal parts and name the parts as a fraction?
/ Unit Enduring Understandings
  • Polygons can be described by their specific properties and named based on the number of sides and corners.
  • Shapes can be divided into equal parts.
  • Equal parts can be named as a fraction.

Unit Learning Targets
Students will ...
  • Identify a polygon as a closed, plane figure made up of three or more line segments.
  • Identify the attributes of quadrilaterals: four sides, four vertices, four angles
  • Compare the properties of squares, rectangles and rhombuses using the language of parallel sides, right angles, obtuse angles, acute angles, and symmetrical as appropriate to the specific shapes.
  • Group figures by their attributes: number of sides and angles
  • Identify and draw examples of quadrilaterals that do not belong to any subcategory such as: trapezoid, parallelogram.
  • Draw a shape and partition into equal parts.
  • Describe the equal parts of the whole as a fraction.

Evidence of Learning
Summative Assessment
  • Identify various quadrilaterals.
  • Sort and categorize quadrilaterals based on specific properties.
  • Compare quadrilaterals
  • Given a shape divide it into equal parts and name the parts as a fraction of a whole.

Equipment needed: Pattern blocks, 2-D templates of 3-D shapes
Teacher Instructional Resources: Scott Foresman, Addison Wesley, Marilyn Burns Resource Guides
Formative Assessments
  • Play “Battleshapes”
  • Student Workbooks
  • Create a geometric mural of quadrilaterals
/
  • Diagnostic checkpoints
  • Skill sheets
  • Create a patterned mural illustrating “fourths”

Integration of Technology:
  • SMARTBoard to play online games and utilize online.
  • ELMO for demonstration purposes.

Technology Resources:
Click the links below to access additional resources used to design this unit:
  • – Basic Introduction. Match polygons their names.
  • - Classify polygons based on properties.
  • – Good for Enrichment. Polygon/quadrilateral sort
  • - 2-D Shapes Game - Concentration
  • - Symmetry Game
  • - Tangrams- good for slides, flips, rotations.
  • - Robopacker - good for slides, flips and rotations.
  • - Good for enrichment. Name the polygon using word jumble and clue.
  • - Good for fine motor and spatial reasoning.

Opportunities for Differentiation:
Modifications: Act out slides, flips and turns, provide word bank of geometric vocabulary when describing shapes, provide Pattern Blocks when comparing quadrilaterals.
Enrichment: Extrapolate the names of shapes with greater number of sides/edges.
Teacher Notes:
The geometry unit is rich in new vocabulary. Pre-teach the language component of this unit, act-out the vocabulary, keep a word bank and draw corresponding illustrations.