Teaching Geometric Thinking To Your Preschooler
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Though mastering geometry might seem like a far-fetched dream for most young children, there’s definitely no harm in introducing the concepts early on. Parents can easily do this by talking about shapes and using geometry activities for preschoolers.
Geometry is an essential part of adult life. Even if one doesn’t use it in their professional career, it still drives reasoning and mathematical thinking. It’s no wonder that so much importance is given to it in school. If you have a preschooler, it’s not too early to start teaching geometric thinking to him. You can use simple everyday situations to explain the concept.
How to Encourage Geometric Thinking for Young Children
1. Using Geometrical Language
Introducing geometrical concepts while speaking to your preschooler is one of the easiest ways to do just that. While going for a walk, point out the different things you see and explain the shapes. Point out the wheels of a car and tell your child that they’re circles, or show him a bus and tell him it’s a rectangle. You can also talk about shapes when playing with him. Create different ones using building blocks and point them out as square or triangle. Show him pictures of different shapes and talk about them, emphasizing on their properties like number of sides.
2. Geometry in Daily Life
Incorporating geometry into your preschooler’s daily routine is another way to explain the concepts. Ask him to arrange all his toys in a straight line or in a circle on the floor. Using a chalk, make a few shapes on the floor and ask him to place a toy that will fit the shape. This is one of the best geometry shape activities for kids as it centers on play. When your child is more familiar with shapes, pose different questions about them. You can point out a rectangular box and ask him if it would fit into a circular box.
3. Playing with Shapes
Once you’ve introduced your child to different geometrical shapes, move him on to more geometry games for kids. Ask him to create different shapes using his hands and legs. You can also encourage him to design the shapes using toy blocks. While doing so, explain the concept of the third dimension to your child. Give him a ruler and stencils and teach him how to draw different shapes using them.
4. Introducing the Concept of Space and Locations
Geometry is not just about shapes. It’s also about space and location. Introduce your child to these concepts by engaging him in games that help with the development of geometric thinking. Carrom is one such game. It requires your child to understand the location of a particular coin and manoeuvre the striker through the space to hit the coin. While not easy to master, it’s definitely fun and interesting. If he finds it too hard, teach him tic-tac-toe which is considerably easy.
Encouraging your preschooler to cut out different shapes or draw and paint them will also help him sharpen his geometric thinking. Try to have him perform such activities as frequently as possible.
