2D Shapes Teaching Resources
Bring dimension to 2D shapes for elementary students with printable worksheets, digital activities, math games and more — created by teachers for teachers!
This comprehensive collection of teaching resources includes editable curriculum-aligned lessons on two-dimensional shapes, all ready to be printed and used in the classroom. Explore the entire collection to find educational games, geometric activities, posters and vocabulary word wall cards to assist your students when they are learning to identify 2D figures by their names and their attributes.
Teaching this part of the math curriculum for the first time in a while? Read on for a primer from the teachers on the Teach Starter team.
What Are 2D Shapes?
Two-dimensional shapes, or 2D shapes, are shapes that have only length and width, but no depth. Each of these geometric shapes has its own unique characteristics and properties, such as the number of sides, the types of angles and the relationship between the sides and angles.
For example, a square has four equal sides and four right angles, while a circle has no sides and no angles.
Teaching about 2D geometric shapes is crucial in those early primary grades as these are the building blocks of more complex geometric concepts. Understanding them is an important foundation for developing spatial reasoning skills. It will also lay the groundwork for learning about symmetry, angles, perimeter and area, among other geometry and measurement concepts.
2D Shapes — A Kid-Friendly Definition
Looking to provide a simple definition for your primary-grade students? Here's a kid-friendly definition you can use:
A 2D shape is a flat shape that has only two dimensions — length and width. When something is two-dimensional, it's flat, like a drawing or a picture on a piece of paper.
Understanding 2D shapes is important because it helps us recognize and describe the shapes we see around us, and it can also help us with math and other subjects.
2D Shape Examples
A definition is a good start, but providing concrete examples will help students begin to wrap their heads around these two dimensional-objects!
Let's look at some common examples of 2D shapes that we teach in elementary school:
Square
A square is a 2D shape with four straight sides that are all equal in length and four right angles. It is a type of rectangle and a type of parallelogram.
Rectangle
A rectangle is a 2-dimensional shape that has four straight sides. Unlike a square, a rectangle has two sides that are longer than the other two. It has four right angles and opposite sides that are parallel and equal in length.
Parallelogram
Like a rectangle and square, the parallelogram has four sides and is considered a 2D shape. The four straight sides of a parallelogram are parallel to each other. Opposite sides of a parallelogram are equal in length, and opposite angles are equal in measure. Squares, rectangles, and rhombuses are all examples of parallelograms.
Trapezoid
A trapezoid is a quadrilateral shape with two parallel sides and two non-parallel sides. The parallel sides are called the bases of the trapezoid, and the non-parallel sides are called the legs. Even though a trapezoid has four sides, it is not a parallelogram!
Triangle
A triangle is a two-dimensional shape that has three straight sides and three angles. The angles of a triangle always add up to 180 degrees.
Circle
A circle is a 2D geometric shape that is round and has no straight sides. It is defined as the set of all points in a plane that are at a fixed distance (called the radius) from a single point (called the center).
Ellipse
An ellipse is a 2D shape that is similar to a circle, but its shape is stretched out or elongated. It is defined as the set of all points in a plane whose distances from two fixed points (called the foci) add up to a constant value.
Pentagon
A pentagon is a 2D shape that has five straight sides and five angles. The word "pentagon" comes from the Greek words "penta" (meaning "five") and "gonia" (meaning "angle"). Each angle of a regular pentagon measures 108 degrees, and the sum of the angles in a pentagon is 540 degrees.
Hexagon
A hexagon is a 2D shape that has six straight sides and six angles. Each angle of a hexagon measures 120 degrees, and the sum of the angles in a hexagon is 720 degrees. Snowflakes are a common example of hexagons found in nature, and so is the honeycomb!
Rhombus
A rhombus is a 2D shape with four straight sides that are all equal in length. It is a type of parallelogram, and it has opposite angles that are equal in measure.
Octagon
An octagon is an eight-sided 2D shape. A stop sign is an octagon that students might recognize from seeing it along the road on the way to school.
Quadrilateral
A quadrilateral is a 2D shape with four sides and four angles. The sum of the interior angles of a quadrilateral is always 360 degrees. The following are all examples of quadrilaterals:
- Square
- Rectangle
- Parallelogram
- Trapezoid
- Rhombus
What Are Polygons?
Many of the 2D shapes that students learn about are polygons.
A polygon is a 2D shape that has three or more straight sides and angles. Polygons can have any number of sides, but they must be straight, and they must not cross each other.
The word "polygon" comes from the Greek words "poly" (which means "many") and "gonia" (which means "angle").
Here are some common examples of polygons:
- Triangles
- Squares
- Rectangles
- Pentagons
- Hexagons
- Octagons
A circle and an ellipse are both 2D shapes, but they are not polygons. They have a curved shape, while polygons consist of a closed structure with sides.
2D Shapes in Kindergarten
Teaching kindergarten this year? You'll find circles, squares, and more are part of your curriculum.
Introduce your class to these basic 2D shapes and help them learn to identify them by their characteristics and properties, such as the number of sides, corners or curves.
At this stage, students should learn the names of these shapes and be able to draw or trace them. They also might be taught to sort and classify shapes based on their attributes.
2D Shapes Throughout Elementary School
As students leave the primary grades and develop their math skills, they will learn about the relationships between different 2D shapes, such as:
- How a rectangle is made up of two congruent squares
- How a square can be divided into two congruent rectangles
- How to measure different features of shapes
- Learning that shapes in different categories (e.g., rhombuses, rectangles, and others) may share attributes (e.g., having four sides), and the shared attributes can define a larger category (e.g., quadrilaterals).
- Classify two-dimensional figures in a hierarchy of sets and subsets using graphic organizers based on their attributes and properties.
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Drawing Angles Worksheet Set
Use our drawing angles worksheet set to give students differentiated practice in classifying and constructing angles.
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Classifying Angles Right Acute Obtuse Interactive Task Cards
Engage your students with our digital classifying angles right acute obtuse interactive task cards designed to provide varied practice with angle types.
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Classifying and Measuring Angles Activity
Introduce this classifying and measuring angles matching activity to your students to give them engaging, hands-on practice with key geometry concepts.
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Parallel and Perpendicular Lines Test
Administer this parallel and perpendicular lines test to assess your students’ ability to identify types of line pairs in a variety of settings.
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2D Shapes Anchor Chart Set
Hang this 2D shapes anchor chart set in your classroom to give students an easy reference for the attributes of two dimensional shapes.
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Parallel and Perpendicular Lines Activity — Escape Room
Engage your students with this parallel and perpendicular lines activity that encourages cooperation and problem solving to escape!
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Drawing Parallel Lines and Perpendicular Lines Worksheet Set
Utilize this drawing parallel lines and perpendicular lines worksheet set to give your students practice drawing line types on their own and on 2D shapes.
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Identifying Parallel and Perpendicular Lines in Shapes Worksheet Pack
Present this parallel and perpendicular lines in shapes worksheet pack to your students to give them practice identifying attributes of 2D shapes.
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Fire Truck Printable Math Worksheets (PK-K)
Build number and 2D shape identification skills with our Fire Truck Printable Math Worksheets for Pre-K and Kindergarten.
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Busy Binder - Kindergarten Morning Work Activity Book
Review daily calendar, math, literacy, and fine motor skills with a printable kindergarten Busy Binder workbook!
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Sorting by Symmetry: 2D Figure Task Cards
Help students practice sorting 2D shapes by the number of lines of symmetry using this fun set of mathematics sorting cards.
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Identifying Lines of Symmetry Worksheets
Use this set of differentiated worksheets to help students practise the process involved with identifying lines of symmetry on two-dimensional shapes.
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Angle Word Problems – 4th Grade Math Worksheet
Download these angles word problem worksheets so your students can practice calculating missing angles.
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Measuring Angles in Images – 4th Grade Math Worksheets
Get your students using their protractors to measure acute, obtuse, right, straight and reflex angles with this set of differentiated angles worksheets.
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Types of Angles Anchor Charts
Remind your students about the most common types of angles with this set of six classroom anchor charts.
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What's My Card? Shape Board Game
Consolidate knowledge of 2d shapes and 3D objects with a game of shape Guess Who!
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2D Shapes Comparison Worksheet
A set of two 2D shape worksheets for students to record their observations whilst comparing properties of 2D shapes.
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Interactive Activity - 2D Shapes Mystery Bag
Help students identify the properties of 2D shapes with this 10-slide interactive activity.
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Pot of Gold Sort - 2D and 3D Shapes
Sort coins that feature 2D shapes and 3D objects into their corresponding pots with a St. Patricks Day theme!
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2D Shapes Poster
Use this colorful poster with a collection of 2D shapes in your math classroom.
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Coloring 2-D Shapes Worksheet
Practice identifying rectangles, squares, circles, and triangles with this 1-page worksheet.
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Measuring and Drawing Angles – Task Cards
Improve student understanding of angle measurement with this set of 24 task cards.
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2D and 3D Shape Posters
Use this set of 14 brightly colored 2D and 3D shape posters to decorate your classroom and build academic vocabulary.
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Missing Angle Small Group Bingo
Practice how to find the measurement of a missing angle with this small group Bingo game.
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Missing Angle Task Cards
Practice how to find the measure of a missing angle with this set of 18 task cards.
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Scarecrow Shape Hunt Worksheet
Practice identifying circles, squares, triangles, and rectangles with a fall-themed Scarecrow Shape hunt worksheet.
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Color by 2-D Shape Worksheets
A set of five color by shape worksheets.
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Drawing Angles Anchor Chart
Remind your students how to draw angles using a protractor with this classroom anchor chart.
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Measuring Angles Anchor Chart
Remind your students how to measure angles using a protractor with this classroom anchor chart.
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Supplementary Angles – 4th Grade Math Worksheet
Teach your students to identify and calculate supplementary angles with this one-page maths worksheet.
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Complementary Angles – 4th Grade Math Worksheet
Teach your students to identify and calculate complementary angles with this one-page maths worksheet.
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Let's Sort It! - 2D and 3D Shapes
Play this sorting game when learning about the properties of 2D and 3D shapes.