Seeing geometry in art

http://illuminations.nctm.org/LessonDetail.aspx?ID=L558

A lesson plan for Grade 3 and 5 Mathematics

Provider: National Council of Teachers of Mathematics

About this resource

Appropriate grades

3 and 5

Subjects

mathematics (geometry)

Provider

National Council of Teachers of Mathematics

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Students use paintings studied in the previous lesson to connect their knowledge of geometric shapes and terms with Kandinsky’s use of geometric figures. After reading Shapes, Shapes, Shapes by Tana Hoban or The Greedy Triangle by Marilyn Burns, the class participates in a discussion of shapes found in the environment. Then, students choose a painting from the Artcyclopedia website and identify different shapes found in the piece. Finally, students write about the shapes and their properties.

Students will:

• Identify geometric shapes in a piece of art.
• Compare the use of consistency of geometry in several pieces of Kandinsky’s artwork.

NCTM Standards and Expectations covered in this lesson include:

• Describing location and movement using common language and geometric vocabulary.
• Creating and describing mental images of objects, patterns, and paths.
• Recognizing geometric ideas and relationships and applying them to other disciplines and to problems that arise in the classroom or in everyday life.
• Building and drawing geometric objects.