TCNJ Lesson Plan

Perimeter of Shapes

Student Name: Jennifer Sheridan

School Name:Hopewell Elementary School

Grade Level: 2nd Grade

Host Teachers Name: Ms. Harjes

Guidingand/or EssentialQuestions:
What is a perimeter?
How do you measure the perimeter of different shapes?
Pre-lesson Assignments and/or Student Prior Knowledge(ex. background knowledge,
possible misconceptions, prior lesson content)
The students will have had experience with measurement in both centimeters as well as inches.
They will know the basic properties of shapes such as squares are equal on all sides etc. If they
have any previous knowledge of area they may confuse the two but typically perimeter is taught
first.
Standards:
CCSS.Math.Content.2.MD.A.4: Measure to determine how much longer one object is than
another, expressing the length difference in terms of a standard length unit.
Learning Objectives and Assessments:
Learning Objectives
Students will find the perimeter of shapes by
measuring to the nearest inch

Students will find the perimeter of shapes by

measuring to the nearest centimeter

Assessment
Students will measure the sides of different
shapes, find all of the shapes perimeters, place
the appropriate label onto the front of the shape,
and creating a perimeter ice cream cone.
Teacher will assess the student work for proper
label matching and placement.
Students will write their name using centimeter
graph paper to make boxy letters.
Teacher will assess student names for
identification of mathematically correct
perimeter of each letter in centimeters.

Students will use the numbers given to find the

perimeter of shapes by adding all of the sides
together

Students will work in groups with different task

cards and try to figure out the different
perimeter problems as a whole group. Each
group member must agree and if a group gets
stuck one member will be in charge of the
calculator.
Teacher will assess number correct for ability to
find the perimeter of shapes using the numbers
given/the property of addition to do so and the
groups ability to work together to accomplish a
task.

Materials/Resources:
Anchor chart
Colored markers
Duct tape/Stuffed Animal
At least 6 glue sticks
At least 6 rulers
Ice cream cone activity (20)
http://stepintosecondgrade.blogspot.com/2013/04/perimeter-main-idea-and-adverbs.html
Centimeter graphing paper (20)
Crayons/colored pencils
At least 6 different perimeter related Task Cards
Calculators
Scrap paper
Pig Pen worksheet for early finishers (20)
http://00.edu-cdn.com/worksheet-image/311122/find-perimeter-geometrythird-grade.gif

Plan for set-up/distribution/cleanup of materials:

The anchor chart/beginning demonstration will be prepared beforehand and ready at/near the
carpet area. Models of each activity will be created and ready to explain before the students
begin. The materials for the inches perimeter ice cream cones will be cut out and provided for
each student at the designated station. The task cards will be at their area and the students will
have a calculator and scrap paper at their area to work with. Finally, graphing paper and coloring
tools will be provided at the final station. More calculators as well as an early finisher worksheet
will be located at the center octagon shaped table.
Step by Step plan:
1. Lesson beginning: Good morning boys and girls, can I have everyone meet me at the
carpet story style facing the rocking chair/easel? *students move* Alright, this is very
important so if you are sitting somewhere that you think you might get distracted I would

2.

3.

4.

5.
6.

like for you to move yourself before we begin. Today we are going to be talking about
perimeter; can anybody tell me what a perimeter is? *call on student volunteers* If you
have heard the word perimeter before great, if not that is okay too. The perimeter is the
distance around the outside of a shape. I am going to write that on our handy-dandy
anchor chart along with my #1 piece of advice which is to count up all of the sides and
add them together however, if a side amount is missing look for the congruent (or equal)
side in order to find out the missing measurement. *Demonstrate an example on anchor
chart*
Could anyone think of a real life example of a time that you would want to know the
perimeter of something? *call on volunteers* Those are all great ideas. In my scenario I
work for a zoo and I am in charge of creating the Elephant pen. I have my elephant here
*show stuffed elephant* and his name is AJ. AJ needs at least 600 square feet of space for
the indoor part of his habitat. Lets pretend that for our case 10 inches is equal to 200
square feet. Could someone show me what they would do to test the pen we have made
with duct tape to see if it measures up? *ask for a volunteer* Exactly we would use our
inches side of the ruler, measure each side of the pen and add them all together. If the
number is bigger than 600 square feet than we have succeeded and AJ can happily fit
within his new home. *student will measure each side of the square pen
200+200+200+200 =800 square feet* Great now we can put AJ in his new home.
For our activity today I am going to break you up into small groups and have you work
in centers. The first group I make will go to center #1 first where they will make an ice
cream cone like the one I have modeled. First you will take the shapes given and a ruler,
you will measure each side in inches, and you will place the appropriate tag onto the
shape it goes with. You can place the shapes in whatever order you wish in order to make
a yummy looking perimeter ice cream cone. The second group will go to center #2 and
solve the 6 task cards. You must look for missing congruent sides (like I demonstrated on
the anchor chart), work together, and add the sides up to find the perimeter for the shapes
given. You will have scrap paper and a calculator to use if you need it but try to solve it
first without help. Make sure the whole group agrees before moving on. The third group
will go to center #3 first where they will write their name with boxy looking letters using
centimeter graphing paper and find the perimeter of each letter. I have every letter
modeled for you at the station if you get stuck and cant visualize it easily. Every single
person will get a chance at every center but we all have to be on our best behavior in
order for the centers to go as smooth as possible.
The students will spend time at each station while Ms. Jackie, Ms. Harjes and I either
chose to man a station or wander around offering aid to students struggling. After about
15 minutes Group #1 will go to center #2, Group #2 will go to center #3 and Group #3
will go to center #1. After another 15 minutes at the new stations Group #1 will go to
center #3, Group #2 will go to center #1 and Group #3 will go to center #2.
If anyone finishes an activity early you can grab a pig pen worksheet off of the center
table and work on that until the lesson closure or you could practice measuring shapes on
your own with a ruler.
Closure: Did you enjoy the centers today? I hope they were fun but also taught you a bit
more about perimeter. What did you learn about perimeter that you might not have known
before? How is perimeter a part of your daily life? Was there any part of perimeter that
you may have struggled with? Thank you for being such great workers today! Ms. Harjes

will be doing a follow up lesson on perimeter tomorrow so you can look forward to that if
you enjoyed today!
Key Questions:
What is the perimeter?
How do you find the perimeter?
Could anyone think of a real life example of a time you would want to know the
perimeter of something?
What did you learn about perimeter?
How is perimeter a part of daily life?
Was there any part of perimeter that you may have struggled with?
Logistics:
Timing:
Beginning: 10 minutes
1st Center: 15 minutes
2nd Center: 15 minutes
3rd Center: 15 minutes
Closure: 5 minutes
.
Transitions:
The lesson will begin on the carpet story style facing the rocking chair/easel. Once the directions
are explained and the students are broken up into groups they will travel to their designated
centers. The lesson closure will either be performed at the students desks or back at the carpet
depending on where Ms. Harjes would like for them to be next.
Classroom Management:
If the centers go well this lesson could be very fun for the students however there is also a
chance that they could get rowdy so some redirection of behavior will be needed. I will utilize
clapping patterns, 1,2,3 all eyes on me, and other behavior modification symbols we have been
using throughout the semester.

Differentiation
This lesson will provide the students with group tasks so they will have to be put it extremely
thought out groups. These groups will provide them with the aid of peers if needed as well as a
place to share thoughts or ideas. Since this is not a writing task the students should not be very
difficult to motivate however some may need more assistance with the tasks than others. The

three teachers as well as more experienced peers will offer aid to struggling students. The anchor
chart and modeled activities will also provide extra help for the students to refer to if needed.