Sorting some shapes

Sorting some shapes

Auto-markingOnline interactive
Overview
Using this Resource
Connecting to the Curriculum
Marking Student Responses
Working with Students
Further Resources
This task is about sorting shapes.

Question Change answer

Put each of the ten shapes into the correct place in the table.
Image counting main image

Question

How easy did you find sorting these shapes?

    • Very easy

    • Easy

    • OK

    • Hard

    • Very hard

    • I did not know what to do

Question 1Change answer

How did you decide where to put each shape?

Question

Which of these did you NOT have to think about when you decided where to put each shape? 
(Select as many as you think are true)

    • The size of the shape

    • The colour of the shape

    • The kind of shape (e.g., square)

    • The number of sides

Task administration: 
This task can be completed online and has auto marking displayed to students.
Students should have already sorted shapes using just one attribute.
Level:
2
Curriculum info: 
Maths, Geometry and Measurement, Shape
Keywords: 
shape properties, 2-dimensional shapes
Description of task: 
Students sort shapes using two attributes, and recognise where the attributes overlap.
Curriculum Links: 
This resource can be used to help to identify students' understanding of sorting 2-dimensional shapes using two features simultaneousl.
Learning Progression Frameworks
This resource can provide evidence of learning associated with
Geometric thinking, set 3
within the Mathematics Learning Progressions Frameworks.
Read more about the Learning Progressions Frameworks.
Answers/responses: 
   
a) sorting-shapes-answer.png
b)
Any answer (not marked). This is about how easy/difficult students found it.
c)
Accept answer that describes working out one attribute and then the other, e.g.,
  • I picked a shape then looked at the colour and then the size and put it in the table
  • I moved the shape to colour bit and then worked out whether it was big or small
d) The kind of shape and the number of sides are attributes that are not needed to answer sort these shapes in this resource.
Teaching and learning: 
This resource is about sorting 2-dimensional shapes using two attributes.
Diagnostic and formative information: 
Student response Next steps
Students correctly sort 5-9 shapes with none incorrectly sorted or
Students correctly sorting 8-9 shapes with 1-2 incorrectly sorted
Get students to do other sorting problems involving two attributes.
Encourage them to check every shape and justify to a peer.
Student exhibits multiple errors
Get students to sort physical shapes based on one attribute (colour or number of sides) placing them over the attribute used in the labelled margin of the table (e.g., put all red shapes over to the left of the word "Red", and the same with Green and Yellow).
Next, get them to decide which cell of the "Red" row, each red shape should be placed.
Repeat for Green and Yellow.
Then within each cell ask whether the shape is small or large.