Learning about shapes and the world around us

The first grade students are only 5 or 6 years old, not many of them have attended kindergarten so they get their first learning experience at school. When we learn about shapes I like to use different colorful pictures to make the students more aware of the shapes that surround us. In this way not only do they learn the shapes (circle,triangle,rectangle,square) but they also learn many other words/ objects that come in the shapes mentioned above.

1. First I put the shapes on the board and I present the words, asking the students to repeat the pronunciation after me several times.

2. Then I distribute different pictures to each student of objects that come in one of the shapes. I encourage students to name the shape of the object and if possible the object itself. I'm there to help them and guide them. Each students comes to the board and puts his/her picture in the correct category.

3. After we put all of the pictures on the board I ask the students to name the shapes in the order they are arranged. 

4. Finally I tell students to bring me one of the shapes so that we can clear the board. By the end of the lesson almost all of the students remember the shapes in English.