Math Concept: Lines of Symmetry

posted Feb 29, 2016, 11:58 AM by Patrick Johnson
Today, students learned about lines of symmetry. To introduce symmetry, students played the YES/NO (concept attainment) game. Students were shown shapes that were labelled YES and those that were labelled NO  (about 10-15 shapes in each group). 

Students were told that the YES shapes had a quality that was missing from the NO shapes. Students were encouraged to make and revise predictions as to what made the YES group different from the NO group.

Afterwards, students were shown TESTERS. They decided (with thumbs up/down) whether they thought the shape belonged in the YES or NO group.

After going through the testers and sharing predictions with a partner, students were given the opportunity to share their thinking:
Some responses:
-The YES group had parallel lines (this was interesting, although not true of all of the shapes in the YES group).
-If you folded the shapes in the YES group, they  would line up with each other.
-The YES group all have lines of symmetry (yes a students said this.. hooray).


A sample of the shapes students were shown on the projector:

The testers:


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