Teaching Angles: Quick and Fun Activities
Updated: Apr 4
Angles offer the perfect opportunity for some fun practical work. Differentiating for a range of ages and abilities is also a breeze! As a quick refresher, the types of angles are acute (greater than 0° but less than 90°), right (90°), obtuse (greater than 90° but less than 180°), straight (180°) and reflex (greater than 180° but less than 360°). Here's just a selection of activities which I love:
Angle Hunts
Hunt indoors and out for angles. They're everywhere! You can use the following to help:
✔Right angle munchers (top left image) - draw a circle on a piece of paper/card and cut it out. Fold into quarters and cut out one quarter. Open out again and you've got your right angle muncher!
✔Labelled angle finder (top middle image) - cut a circle out of card. Draw a line across the middle of the circle and then split the top half into two quarters. Label the angles (right, acute, obtuse and reflex). Next, stick one arrow behind the circle pointing out along the line. Use a split pin to attach another arrow behind. Children can then move this arrow to help them to begin to recognise the different angle types.
✔Angle finder (bottom left image) - ideal for children who are gaining confidence with types of angles. Simply cut out two strips of card and join them together at the ends with a split pin. Children can open and close the angle finder to determine the type of angle which they find.
✔Protractor - once a child is confident with the different types of angles, they can move on to using a protractor. They should begin by learning to measure angles up to 180°.
K-Nex Angles
K-Nex are ideal for making angles with! The different connectors mean that each type of angle can be made with ease! Children could be challenged to make a model using a range of different angles.
Pipe Cleaner Angles
Pipe cleaners are another great resource for making angles with. More able children can use a protractor to measure the angles. If you don't have any pipe cleaners you can just use strips of card or straws to create angles!
Angle Art
Draw random horizontal, vertical and diagonal lines across a piece of paper. Using one of the angle finders or a protractor, measure the different angles.
Over to you now - what are your favourite activities for teaching angles?