I Spy Shapes

Goal: Find shapes around you

1. Name the shape

Choose someone to be the Leader. The first time, choose an adult.

The Leader secretly picks an object that everyone can see.

The object should have a geometric shape, such as a triangle or sphere.

The Leader announces the shape:

“I spy with my little eye: a circle!”

2. Gather clues

Children take turns asking yes-or-no questions to identify the object.

• Is it blue?

• Can we see it out the window?

• Do we use it to tell time?

After each turn, help children review the clues so far: “It’s a circle. It’s not blue. We can’t see it out the window. We do not use it to tell time.”

3. Guess

After three turns in a row in which different players get an answer of “yes”, everyone may take a turn guessing the object. The player who guesses the object is the winner. If no one guesses correctly, go back to step 2.

 

Variations

I Spy Numbers (Grades K, 1, 2)
Instead of a shape, the Leader announces a number (for instance, on a calendar, poster, or clock) that everyone can see: “I spy the number 12.” Players ask yes-or-no questions to identify the number.

 

I Spy Letters (Grades K, 1, 2)
The Leader announces a clue about the number of letters in a word that is visible to all on a bulletin board, wall, or sign. For instance, “I spy a word with three letters,” or “I spy a word with two E’s.” Players ask yes-or-no questions to identify the word.

 

 

Hot or Cold (Grades K, 1, 2)
Instead of asking questions, players move to the area where they think the object might be located and ask, “Is it near here?” The Leader tells them whether they are “hot” (near the object) or “cold” (far away).

 

 

Books and Other Resources

"I Spy" series (Grades K, 1, 2)
Published by Scholastic or check www.scholastic.com/ispy/

More books to come!

Spotlight

Recognizing shapes

Before reading on, shut your eyes and imagine a triangle.What does it look like?

Many people envision triangles with the point at the top and close to equal sides.

Triangles, rectangles, and other geometric shapes can actually appear in many different shapes, sizes, and orientations. 

Finding shapes all around can help children recognize that what makes a triangle is three sides and three angles, not a certain position or orientation. Likewise, what makes a rectangle is four sides and four right angles. Squares are rectangles, too.

Connections

Logic of Yes and No

Negatives in everyday conversation can be hard to understand, especially when more than one is in a sentence. When a child says, “I wasn’t going to not feed the cat,” does she mean she wasn’t going to feed the cat, or that she was ?

In this game, children need to think about the meaning of negatives. If you know that the object is shaped like a circle, is not blue, and is not used for telling time, what could it be? It could be any color but blue, and it’s not the circular clock on the wall.

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