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Shape Up Your Art!

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Lesson Plan

Shape Up Your Art!

Students will be able to identify and accurately draw basic two-dimensional shapes (circles, squares, triangles, rectangles) and use them to create a simple picture.

Understanding and drawing shapes is fundamental for developing spatial awareness, problem-solving skills, and artistic expression. It helps students see the world in terms of basic components and build confidence in their drawing abilities.

Audience

1st Grade Students

Time

30 minutes

Approach

Through guided drawing and creative application.

Materials

Whiteboard or Projector, Markers or Pens, Shape Up Your Art! Slide Deck, Paper, Crayons or Colored Pencils, Warm-Up: Shape Scavenger Hunt, Shape Drawing Activity, and Cool-Down: Shape Check!

Prep

Gather Materials & Review

10 minutes

Step 1

Introduction & Warm-Up

5 minutes

  • Greet students and introduce the day's lesson with the slide deck.
    - Begin with the Warm-Up: Shape Scavenger Hunt. Ask students to look around the classroom for real-world objects that resemble basic shapes (circle, square, triangle, rectangle).
    - Discuss their findings as a class, reinforcing shape identification.

Step 2

Shape Review & Guided Drawing

10 minutes

  • Use the Shape Up Your Art! Slide Deck to review each basic shape: circle, square, triangle, and rectangle.
    - For each shape, demonstrate on the board how to draw it, emphasizing key characteristics (e.g., a square has four equal sides).
    - Have students practice drawing each shape on their paper as you demonstrate.

Step 3

Creative Shape Drawing Activity

10 minutes

  • Introduce the Shape Drawing Activity. Explain that students will use the shapes they just practiced to create a picture (e.g., a house, a robot, a car, an animal).
    - Encourage creativity and remind them that everything can be made from basic shapes.
    - Circulate around the room, offering assistance and encouragement.

Step 4

Share & Cool-Down

5 minutes

  • Ask a few students to share their creations with the class, pointing out the shapes they used.
    - Conclude with the Cool-Down: Shape Check! activity. Ask students to quickly draw one of each shape they learned today and identify it verbally or by writing its name. This serves as a quick assessment of their understanding.
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Slide Deck

Shape Up Your Art!

Get ready to draw and create with amazing shapes!

Welcome students and introduce the exciting world of shapes!

What Are Shapes?

Shapes are everywhere!
They are the building blocks of everything we see.

Ask students what they already know about shapes. Why are shapes important?

Meet the Circle

Round and round, no corners here!
Like a ball or a yummy cookie.

Introduce the circle. Ask students to identify objects that are circles.

Hello, Square!

Four straight sides, all the same length.
Four perfect corners, like a window pane.

Introduce the square. Emphasize the four equal sides.

Terrific Triangle

Three sides, three corners, pointy or tall.
Like a slice of pizza or a mountain wall.

Introduce the triangle. Point out the three sides and three corners.

Radical Rectangle

Two long sides, two short sides.
Like a door or a tall book.

Introduce the rectangle. Compare it to a square, noting the two long and two short sides.

Let's Create!

Now it's your turn!
Use circles, squares, triangles, and rectangles to draw a picture.
What can you make?

Explain the activity: using shapes to draw a picture. Encourage creativity!

Share Your Art!

Time to show off your masterpieces!
What shapes did you use?

Ask students to prepare to share their creations. Transition to the cool-down.

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Warm Up

Shape Scavenger Hunt!

Objective: To activate prior knowledge of shapes and connect them to the real world.

Instructions:

  1. Look around our classroom for objects that look like the shapes we will be talking about today: circles, squares, triangles, and rectangles.
  2. Point to an object and tell your teacher or a classmate what shape it looks like.
  3. Be ready to share your findings with the whole class!

Examples:

  • A clock might be a circle.
  • A book might be a rectangle.
  • A floor tile might be a square.
  • The top of a pizza slice might be a triangle.













My Shape Finds:

  1. Object:


    Shape:


  2. Object:


    Shape:


  3. Object:


    Shape:


  4. Object:


    Shape:


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Activity

Shape Drawing Activity: Build a Picture!

Objective: To creatively use basic shapes to construct a picture.

Materials: Paper, crayons or colored pencils

Instructions:

  1. On your paper, use the shapes we practiced (circles, squares, triangles, rectangles) to draw a picture.
  2. Think about what you can make using these shapes. Here are some ideas:
    • A house made of squares and triangles!
    • A robot with a rectangular body and circular eyes!
    • A car with rectangular windows and circular wheels!
    • An animal with different shaped parts!
  3. Don't be afraid to combine shapes and add details with your crayons or colored pencils.
  4. Be creative and have fun!

































My Shape Creation!
(Draw your picture here!)

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Cool Down

Shape Check!

Objective: To quickly assess student understanding of basic 2D shapes.

Instructions:

  1. On your paper, quickly draw one example of each of the four shapes we learned today.
  2. Next to each shape, write its name.
  • Circle
  • Square
  • Triangle
  • Rectangle




My Shape Check!

  1. Draw a Circle here:


  2. Draw a Square here:


  3. Draw a Triangle here:


  4. Draw a Rectangle here:


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