Geometry Freebie!

She’s A-L-I-V-E!  I am sorry I have been MIA the last week.  For some reason I have been SO tired.  It is like I can’t get my teaching mojo back this week.  I am so grateful for the long weekend to recover!  This was the longest four day week ever!

I wanted to share a freebie that I did not include in my geometry unit because it was simply getting too big and I wanted to be done with it.  Ever feel this way?

We have been studying circles, mostly focusing on vocabulary.  In third grade students need to know radius, diameter, center, and circumference.  For this activity we went over the vocabulary using the geometry dictionary from the unit.  You could also define the words on the board and draw a picture instead.  My fabulous partner came up with the idea to relate diameter and radius to the size of the d and the r.  For example, diameter is a long line all the way across the circle through the center and the “d” is made with a long line.  The radius is a short line from the center to an outside point and the “r” is made with a short line.  Get it?  My kids all went, “Ahhh,” when we explained this!

Then we gave students 3 colors of yarn and a googly eye.  I would have rather used buttons, but didn’t have any so a googly eye it was!

Students then use one color of yarn to glue down and create a diameter, another color to glue down and create a radius and a final color for the circumference.  Then students used the googly eye as the center.  Then students created a key for each yarn color. I like this activity because it made the learn kinesthetic.  A large portion of my class has some kind of language disorder or speaks another language so any way we can bring vocabulary to life, the better!

I hope you guys have a fantastic LONG weekend!

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Mandy Gregory

Mandy Gregory is a 2007 and 2012 Teacher of the Year. She has taught Kindergarten- 4th grades in both the general education and inclusion settings. She is currently a 1st grade Special Education teacher.  She is the owner and creator of Mandy’s Tips for Teachers website (www.mandystipsforteachers.com) and has over 13 years of teaching experience. She is married with two beautiful children.