USCA School of Education
Lesson Plan Format
Quadrilaterals
Candidate Name:
Subject Area:
Mathematics
Grade Level(s):
3rd
Date Lesson to Be Taught: September 10, 2015
Time Frame/Duration: 45 minutes
SC Standard(s):
3.G.1 Understand that shapes in different categories (e.g., rhombus, rectangle,
square, and other 4-sided shapes) may share attributes (e.g., 4-sided figures) and
the shared attributes can define a larger category (e.g., quadrilateral). Recognize
rhombuses, rectangles, and squares as examples of quadrilaterals, and draw
examples of quadrilaterals that do not belong to any of these subcategories.
Learning Objective: Students will be able to identify different quadrilaterals and their properties.
Such as, square, rectangle, rhombus, parrellogram, and trapezoid.
Essential Question:
What are the properties of a quadrilateral?
Number of Students: 26
Grouping:
Whole class and pairs.
Accommodations (Differentiation, Special Needs, Enrichment, Extensions):
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Learning style variation:
o Auditory- group and class discussion (reading definitions)
o Visual- Smart Board presentation, worksheet that can also be a graphic organizer
(seeing shape and definition)
o Kinesthetic – Worksheet, Smart Board interaction (touching the shapes)
Collaborative groups- working with neighbors will help low students understand any
misconceptions they may have.
Early finishers (Enrichment) - I will have my early finishers work on the geometry task cards.
Materials/Resources:
Smart Board presentation
Shape Cards
Quadrilateral Attributes Worksheet
Quadrilateral definitions (follow up)
Quadrilateral shape game (follow up)
Geometry task cards (early finisher)
Educational Technology (as appropriate): I will use the Smart Board with an interactive lesson so
that the students can reveal definitions and see the shapes on the board. This
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will help them be able to identify the different attributes of each shape as well
as appeal to various learning styles.
Safety Issues/Concerns (if applicable): Trip Hazard. Students will be coming up to the Smart Board. I
will advise my class to please make sure all belongings are off of the floor
before the lesson begins.
Lesson Procedures:
Step-by-Step Outline of the Lesson:
6-E Format: Engage, Explore/Explain, Elaborate, Evaluate, End
 I will start my lesson by telling my students I am going to pass out cards with shapes on
them. They are to work with their neighbor and group the shape cards in any way they
can.
 I will tell them that they group the cards in any way that make sense to them. I will
remind them they are to keep their voices to where only their neighbor can hear and that
they have 2 minutes.
 I will set the timer and let them work together to group the shapes. (Engage)
 Once the timer goes off I will tell the class to stop and to not touch the cards.
 I will then go to each group of students and ask them to tell the class how they grouped
their shapes.
 I will write down common patterns that are noticed between the groups. (Ex. If two or
more groups have a category like “all the shapes had four sides” or “these have straight
sides and these have slanted sides”.) (Explain/Evaluate)
 Then I will ask the students “What is something all of the shapes had in common?”
 They should respond with “they all have four sides.”
 At this point I will open up the minimized Smart Board presentation and ask the students
the question on the first slide “ What is a quadrilateral?” The definition is hidden so I will
let the students try and answer it before revealing the definition. (Explain)
 When I do reveal the definition I will call on one student to read the definition for the
class.
 “Now before we go any further I want you and your neighbor to solve a mystery for me.
We have all these shapes that have different names but they all have four sides. We need
to know what makes them different from each other.”
 “I am going to hand you a table.” I will show the table on the Smart Board. What you and
your neighbor will do is write yes or no to each of the attributes according to which shape
you are looking at.”
 “Hold up shape card A. (I will point to the side column so they know why I picked A.)
 I will then go through each attribute with them asking and explaining the different ones.
 “Now when you get to the end the last box you wrote YES in is the name of the shape
you are looking for. So what is the name of shape A?” Students should respond with
rectangle. (Explain)
 “I want to remind you to use your neighbor voices and to work together through this. You
may pick up a shape you already know but you still need to write YES or NO in the
attribute boxes.”
 I will pass out the worksheets and then put 20 minutes on the timer.
 While they are working I will walk around and observe my students. I will listen to what
they are discussing, how they are choosing their answers and if there are any errors I need
to address. (Explore) If I have any early finishers I will have them review the geometry
flash cards.
 At the end of the 20 minutes I will call them back to attention.
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“Instead of us going through this worksheet, we are going to look at what makes each
shape unique.”
I will refer back to the Smart Board presentation. (Slide 3)
“This shape is a rectangle. Who can tell me why it is a rectangle?” “What makes this
shape a rectangle?”
I will accept answers and then have a student come up and tap the shape to reveal the
definition and then read it to the class. (Elaborate)
I will continue this through the next shapes. (Elaborate)
When I get to rhombus I will point out that it looks a lot like a parrellogram.
“What do you think the difference in these could be?”
When the definition is revealed and read I will be sure to highlight the difference between
the two. “A rhombus has to have all four sides congruent a parrellogram does not.”
Once we finish going through the shapes we will come to the Venn diagram between
square and rhombus. (Explore)
I will ask the students if they can tell me the differences and similarities between the two.
I will not just call on students with raised hands but students who don’t have their hands
raised.
When I get a feasible answer I will have them come up and write it in the Venn diagram.
After we complete the Venn diagram I will ask them the question on the next slide. “Can
a square be a rhombus?” Turn and discuss this with your neighbor.
I will give them about 30 seconds to discuss this question. (Explore)
When time is up I will ask for responses to the question.
After I receive some responses I will reveal the answer to the question and we will
discuss. (Elaborate)
o “What makes a shape a quadrilateral?”
o “Why do different quadrilaterals have different names?”
o “Can a shape have more than one name?”
o “If I have a shape that has all four sides congruent, what is the name of that
shape?”
o “If I have a shape that has all four sides AND four corners congruent, what is the
name of that shape?” (Evaluate)
I will also ask my students to write down on a piece of paper where they would see a
quadrilateral outside of the classroom. I will encourage them to give me examples of
trapezoids, rhombus, or parallelograms. This will serve as their exit slip. (End)
Contextual Teaching:
I will tie this into real world application by asking students to give me examples of when
they would see a quadrilateral outside of the classroom. This will help them connect their
information they are learning to shapes they may see everyday.
Instructional Strategies –
 Collaborative learning (working with their neighbor)
 Independent exploration (working through the shape categories without me telling
them what they are first)
 Learning style representation
 Visual- Smart Board Presentation, worksheet (can later be used as a
reference)
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 Auditory- group discussion, whole class discussion
 Kinesthetic – worksheet, Smart Board interaction
Curriculum integration –
 Venn diagram (ELA)
Real world application- have students write examples of quadrilaterals for their
exit slip.
Suggested Assessments
Prior to Lesson:
I will assess prior knowledge by having my students categorize the shapes in any way that they choose.
This will allow me to see what they already know or are observing on their own about the shapes and
their similarities or differences.
During the Lesson:
Questions after we finish the shape attribute group worksheet.
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“This shape is a rectangle. Who can tell me why it is a rectangle?” “What makes this
shape a rectangle?”
“This shape is a square. What are its characteristics that make it a square.”
“What do you think the differences in a rhombus and a parrellogram are?”
“Could a square be a rhombus?”
After the Lesson:
I will collect the attribute worksheets to check and make sure the students completed them and that their
answers are correct since we did not go over them during the lesson. This will also help me determine
any students who had trouble with the content or the assignment. Any student who misses more than 3
will require follow up. The exit slip will serve as a way for me to see how many of my students can
relate the information to real-life examples. If my students struggle with this we will have a follow up
lesson. I will also address the class with the following questions to check for general understanding.
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“What makes a shape a quadrilateral?”
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“Why do different quadrilaterals have different names?”
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“Can a shape have more than one name?”
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“If I have a shape that has all four sides congruent, what is the name of that shape?”
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“If I have a shape that has all four sides AND four corners congruent, what is the name of that
shape?”
Follow-up:
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Any student or group that misses more than 3 answers on the quadrilateral
worksheet will have to have a follow up activity implemented. My first
intervention with them would be to have them work on this during learning
centers by reviewing the quadrilateral definitions. I would also have them use
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the iPads to play the quadrilateral shape game to help with this concept. I
also plan to have a follow up lesson on real world shapes with the class.
Especially if more than 25% of the class isn’t able to come up with good
examples on their exit slips.
Reference(s):
http://www.sheppardsoftware.com/mathgames/geometry/shapeshoot/Quad
ShapesShoot.htm
http://exchange.smarttech.com/details?id=58560e12-fd34-4b40-852575aab706ed59
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Quadrilateral-Hierarchy-Chartwith-Shape-Cards-and-Key-Geometry-533017
https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/Geometry-Task-Cards-328507
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