Match shapes to fill in a puzzle.
Materials
- Large construction paper
- Small blocks of different shapes
- Pencil
Directions
- Place small blocks of different shapes on a large piece of construction paper to make a picture.
- With a pencil, trace an outline around each shape and then remove the blocks.
- Give the construction paper to your child and have her create the same design with the blocks, using your picture as a blueprint.
- Ask your child how the blue print was helpful and why she thinks blue prints are helpful when building structures.
- Create another blueprint using more blocks and do the activity again.
Talk About It
Talk about the importance of planning a design before you engineer it. Walk around your neighborhood and point out places that needed blueprints such as buildings, bridges, and playgrounds.
Take It Further
The next time your child is playing with blocks, encourage her to draw a picture of her plan before she builds. After she has created a blueprint, use it as a guide to make a structure. When the structure is complete, compare it to the blueprint to see what is the same and what is different.
