Maryland Math K.GR.B.5

MathKindergartenGeometric Reasoning and Measurement

The Standard

Identify and describe given shapes and shapes of objects in everyday situations including two-dimensional shapes (circle, triangle, rectangle, square, hexagon) and three-dimensional shapes (cone, cube, cylinder, and sphere) regardless of their orientation or overall size.

Maryland College and Career Ready Standards for Mathematics (2025) · WORK WITH TWO-DIMENSIONAL AND THREE-DIMENSIONAL SHAPES.

Teacher's field guide

What This Standard Means

What Students Need to Do: Students name circles, triangles, rectangles, squares, hexagons, cones, cubes, cylinders, and spheres in pictures and everyday objects. They describe sides, corners, flat faces, or curved surfaces. They keep the same name when a shape is turned or shown in a different size.
What Mastery Looks Like: A student names a small, tilted square as a square and a ball as a sphere. They can point to features that support their answers, such as the square's four equal sides.
Common Misconceptions: Children may call a tilted square a diamond or think a larger shape needs a different name. They may call a ball a circle or a die a square instead of naming the solid.
How to Assess It: Show a small tilted square, a large sideways triangle, a hexagon, a can, and a ball. Ask, "Name each shape and tell me how you knew for two of them."

Lesson moves

Ways to Teach It

Give pairs paper shape cutouts, a die, a ball, a can, and a paper cone to sort into flat and solid shapes.
Draw a square tilted onto one corner and ask, "Is it still a square, and what tells you?"
Play shape bingo with shapes shown in different sizes and directions; call clues such as "six straight sides" instead of names.
Walk around the classroom with a shape checklist; point to a clock, die, can, or party hat and name each shape.

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