Math  /  1st Grade  /  Unit 8: Shapes and Time

Shapes and Time

Students sort, classify, and compose two- and three-dimensional shapes by defining attributes. They partition circles and rectangles into 2 and 4 equal shares called halves or fourths/quarters. Students tell and write time to the hour and half hour, connecting half hours to partitioning a circle into 2 equal shares.

Math

Unit 8

1st Grade

Unit Summary

In Unit 8, students explore geometry and time as they build foundational understanding of shapes, equal shares, and telling time to the hour and half hour. Throughout the unit, students sort, classify, and compose two- and three-dimensional shapes. They partition circles and rectangles and learn to read both analog and digital clocks. They use shape cards, pattern blocks, attribute blocks, geometric solids, and geared clocks to make sense of geometric attributes and time MP.5 Use appropriate tools strategically. . They attend to precision in language when discussing defining attributes MP.6 Attend to precision. .

In Kindergarten, students described objects using the names and relative positions of shapes. They identified shapes as flat (circle, triangle, rectangle, and square) or solid (cube, sphere, cone, and cylinder). Students compared, modeled, and composed shapes. Unit 8 builds on these early experiences, guiding students to reason more precisely about defining attributes and to classify shapes based on those attributes rather than on non-defining attributes.

In Topics A–C, students sort, identify, classify, compose, and partition shapes. They distinguish between defining attributes such as number of sides and corners, and non-defining attributes such as color and orientation. Students build and draw circles, triangles, rectangles, and squares, compose larger two- and three-dimensional shapes from smaller ones, and identify shapes in real-world contexts. They partition circles and rectangles into two and four same-sized shares, reasoning about what makes the shares equal in size and observing that more equal shares results in smaller sized pieces. They describe the whole as 2 of, or 4 of the shares. This work establishes important foundations for future fraction understanding. 

In Topic D, students extend their understanding of measurement to time. They tell and write time to the hour and to the half hour using analog and digital clocks and are introduced to the hour and minute hands. Students connect their work with partitioning circles to the analog clock, recognizing that the minute hand moving halfway around the clock represents half of an hour, or “half past”. 

The work of Unit 8 sets essential foundations for 2nd Grade when students will classify shapes with greater precision, partition shapes into thirds as well as halves and fourths, and tell time to the nearest five minutes, including a.m. and p.m. distinctions 2.G.A.1 Recognize and draw shapes having specified attributes, such as a given number of angles or a given number of equal faces. Identify triangles, quadrilaterals, pentagons, hexagons, and cubes. 2.G.A.2 Partition a rectangle into rows and columns of same-size squares and count to find the total number of them.   2.G.A.3 Partition circles and rectangles into two, three, or four equal shares, describe the shares using the words halves, thirds, half of, a third of, etc., and describe the whole as two halves, three thirds, four fourths. Recognize that equal shares of identical wholes need not have the same shape.   2.MD.C.7 Tell and write time from analog and digital clocks to the nearest five minutes, using a.m. and p.m. . This unit establishes strong conceptual groundwork for continued learning in geometry, fractions, and measurement in later grades.

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Assessment

The following assessments accompany Unit 8.

Student Observational Spreadsheet

Print the Student Observational Spreadsheet to use as a formative tool to monitor the progress of students throughout the unit.

Post-Unit

Use the resources below to assess student understanding of the unit content and action plan for future units.

Unit Prep

Intellectual Prep

Intellectual Prep for All Units

  • Read and annotate the "Unit Summary" and "Essential Understandings" portions of the unit plan. 
  • Do all the Target Tasks and annotate them with the "Unit Summary" and "Essential Understandings" in mind. 
  • Take the Post-Unit Assessment.

Unit-Specific Intellectual Prep

Essential Understandings

  • Shapes have defining attributes that can be used to sort, classify, and compose.
  • A whole can be partitioned into equal shares, and equal shares must be the same size. 
  • When a shape is divided into more same-sized shares, the size of each share becomes smaller.
  • Halves and fourths/quarters describe equal parts of a whole and provide a foundation for future fraction understanding.
  • Time can be measured and represented on digital and analog clocks, and a half hour represents half of a circular clock face.

Materials

To see all the materials needed for this course, view our 1st Grade Course Material Overview.

Vocabulary and Models

Unit Vocabulary

a half

a fourth

attribute

circle

fourths

halves

hour hand

minute hand

rectangle

square

triangle

To see all the vocabulary for Unit 8, view our 1st Grade Vocabulary Glossary.

Unit Practice

Fluency Activities

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Lesson Map

Topic A: Sort, Identify, and Classify Shapes

Topic B: Composing Shapes

Topic C: Partitioning Shapes

Topic D: Telling Time

Common Core Standards

Key

Major Cluster

Supporting Cluster

Additional Cluster

Core Standards

Geometry

  • 1.G.A.1 — Distinguish between defining attributes (e.g., triangles are closed and three-sided) versus non-defining attributes (e.g., color, orientation, overall size); build and draw shapes to possess defining attributes.
  • 1.G.A.2 — Compose two-dimensional shapes (rectangles, squares, trapezoids, triangles, half-circles, and quarter-circles) or three-dimensional shapes (cubes, right rectangular prisms, right circular cones, and right circular cylinders) to create a composite shape, and compose new shapes from the composite shape. Students do not need to learn formal names such as "right rectangular prism."
  • 1.G.A.3 — Partition circles and rectangles into two and four equal shares, describe the shares using the words halves, fourths, and quarters, and use the phrases half of, fourth of, and quarter of. Describe the whole as two of, or four of the shares. Understand for these examples that decomposing into more equal shares creates smaller shares.

Measurement and Data

  • 1.MD.B.3 — Tell and write time in hours and half-hours using analog and digital clocks.

Foundational Standards

Geometry

  • 1.G.A.2
  • K.G.A.1
  • K.G.A.2
  • K.G.A.3
  • K.G.B.4
  • K.G.B.5
  • K.G.B.6

Future Standards

Geometry

  • 2.G.A.1
  • 2.G.A.3
  • 4.G.A.3

Measurement and Data

  • 2.MD.C.7

Standards for Mathematical Practice

  • CCSS.MATH.PRACTICE.MP1 — Make sense of problems and persevere in solving them.

  • CCSS.MATH.PRACTICE.MP2 — Reason abstractly and quantitatively.

  • CCSS.MATH.PRACTICE.MP3 — Construct viable arguments and critique the reasoning of others.

  • CCSS.MATH.PRACTICE.MP4 — Model with mathematics.

  • CCSS.MATH.PRACTICE.MP5 — Use appropriate tools strategically.

  • CCSS.MATH.PRACTICE.MP6 — Attend to precision.

  • CCSS.MATH.PRACTICE.MP7 — Look for and make use of structure.

  • CCSS.MATH.PRACTICE.MP8 — Look for and express regularity in repeated reasoning.

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