You are currently viewing 3D Shape Creations

3D Shape Creations

My Kindergarten team has recently (as in this week!) switched (back) to thematic units!  When I was in college, I was to teach by thematic unit.  I got my first job right as Reading First was coming in to play.  Thematic units were out… segmented skill teaching and fluency testing were in.  We somehow survived Reading First… only to drilled with program… after program… after program.


This year, we got a new superintendent and a bit more freedom.  After several conversations, we decided to go back to thematic units.  Which for many of us, was finally teaching with thematic units!


So our first unit is this week and we are doing winter.  We got the approval to do themes, but only if every single thing we did was based on common core standards.  We are basing our themes or science and social studies standards and wrapping the ELA and math around them.


We also do collaborative plans.  There are 10 of us though so it’s pretty easy to break the work down.  I’m on the math plans team and we really had fun planning for the week.  My favorite activity we planned was on 3D shapes.  We had covered the shapes before so we did a really quick review with an anchor chart we had previously made.  Then we broke out the play dough!  I found a play dough kit that had 33 little bags of dough that were the perfect size!




3D Shape Creations

I also found this video on YouTube that shows how to make a ball, log and cone for cake decorating.  


First, we watched the video and identified the 3D shapes that they were talking about.  Then I gave them their dough and let them play with it for awhile to warm it up.  The dough is easier to shape when it has been warmed up a little bit.  Next, we practiced making a sphere, cylinder, cone and cube.  We used the methods shown in the video for making a sphere, cylinder and cone.  I showed them how to start with a sphere, then pinch and flip to turn the sphere into a cube.  The cube was the hardest one for them to make.  Possibly due to the fact that their fingers weren’t quite big enough to cover a whole side of the sphere to tamp it into place.
3D Shape Creations3D Shape Creations3D Shape Creations3D Shape Creations

3D Shape Creations3D Shape Creations



We are also required to use Bloom’s Revised Taxonomy. Sometimes it can be really tricky with Kindergarten students.  When they are struggling to get the most basic of skills down, it’s hard to get them to go to the higher levels.  With this assignment, it was a no brainer!

Their assignment was to create a snowman (for the winter thematic unit tie in) using at least 3 of the 4 shapes we were working on.  They did such a great job!



3D Shape Creations
3D Shape Creations

Do you have any 3D shape activities?  Thematic unit ideas?  How about ways to get Kindergarten students using a variety of the Revised Bloom’s Taxonomy?

Leave a Reply