Special Polygon Names

Activity Overview

Both triangles and quadrilaterals are big groups. One of the standards for elementary grades is to be able to recognize shapes and categorize them. There are many things to remember about each polygon, and it can be tricky to keep them all straight.

In this activity, students will create lost flyers to help find and identify some common or regular polygons that have gone "missing". Students may also enjoy making Wanted Posters for any law-breaking polygons, or "fashion" reviews of celebrity polygons. To add faces to shapes, type "face" or "faces" into the search field.

Categorize Triangles

Triangles	can be named by both sides and angles, making seven different types of triangles.
Equilateral Triangles	have equal side lengths and equal angle measurements.
Scalene Triangles	have different lengths for each side.
Isosceles Triangles	have at least two sides with equal length. (An equilateral triangle is ALSO an isosceles triangle)
Acute Triangles	have three acute angles.
Right Triangles	have one right angle and two acute angles.
Obtuse Triangles	have one obtuse angle and two acute angles

Special Quadrilaterals

Square	quadrilateral with four equal sides and four right angles
Rectangle	quadrilateral with four right angles
Rhombus	quadrilateral with four equal sides
Parallelogram	quadrilateral with two sets of parallel sides
Trapezoid	quadrilateral with one pair of parallel sides
Kite	quadrilateral with two pairs of adjacent congruent sides

Lists like the ones above contain helpful information, but can be too wordy and unclear. Charts with images and labels are sometimes more kid-friendly (or just more friendly in general). Sometimes making chart after chart can become tiresome and muddle the brain, so a little extra ingenuity can go a long way.

Template and Class Instructions

(These instructions are completely customizable. After clicking "Copy Activity", update the instructions on the Edit Tab of the assignment.)