Three-Dimensional Shapes: Part 2

Lesson Plan - Get It!

Audio:

In the previous Related Lesson (right-hand sidebar), you learned about cubes, pyramids, rectangular prisms, and triangular prisms.

Say out loud what you learned about the shapes in the last lesson.

Today, you will be learning about spheres, cones, cylinders, and hexagonal prisms. Read on to learn more about some of these new shapes!

The first shape you will learn about during this lesson is a sphere. A sphere is a three-dimensional shape; this means you can hold it in your hand. An example of a sphere is a soccer ball. A soccer ball is round just like a sphere.

Another thing you need to know about spheres is that they are symmetrical. This means if you cut a sphere in half, both sides would be identical. A sphere has no edges (sides) or vertices (corners). Look at the spheres below.

• What do you notice about them?
• Which shape in the first part of the lesson is a sphere?

Did you say the first shape is a sphere? Wonderful!

The next shape you will learn about is a cone.

• Do you recognize the cone from the first part of the lesson? Terrific!

Take a look at the cones below.

• What do you notice about the cones?

A cone is a three-dimensional shape. An example of something you may have seen that has this shape is an ice cream cone! A cone has one circular face, one edge, and one vertex.

• Can you find the face of the cone? What shape is it?

If you said, "The face is a circle," you are correct! A cone has a circular face.

In the example of the ice cream cone, the face is the opening where you put your ice cream!

• Do you want one scoop or two?

A cylinder is a three-dimensional shape just like cubes, cones, and spheres.

• For a quick review, what does "three-dimensional" mean?
• Did you say it means the shape is solid, or that you can hold the shape in your hand?

Excellent!

• How many faces does a cylinder have? What shape are the faces?

• Did you say that a cylinder has two circular faces?

Great! If you look at the cylinders below, you will notice there is one circular face on the bottom (this is the base) and one circular face on the top of the cylinder. Fantastic work!

A common example of a cylinder is a can, like a can of soup.

• Do you have a favorite soup that you like to eat on a cold day or when you're sick?

Look at some of the examples below.

• What else do cylinders remind you of?

The last shape you will learn about in this lesson is a hexagonal prism. Check out all of the hexagonal prisms below.

• What do you notice about them?

See if you can count how many faces a hexagonal prism has.

If you counted eight faces, you are correct! Nice work!

A hexagonal prism has six faces that are squares or rectangles, and two faces that are shaped like hexagons. Check out the hexagonal prisms below.

• What do you notice about hexagonal prisms?
• Do you recognize the image in the middle?

Fun Fact: Did you know that beehives have cells that are shaped like hexagons to store honey ?

You are becoming a shape expert!

Move on to the next section to check out some cool videos that will help you learn more about three-dimensional shapes. You will also get to create your own three-dimensional shapes!