Are you teaching area this year? Then you’ll love this fun interactive area tool! With it, you can show simple rectangles and squares on a grid to model the concept of area. Students will love experimenting with the area tool to help solve problems.

How does it work? Simply drag one of the vertices or corners into a new rectangle or square shape. When you let go, the length of each of the sides will automatically appear. The total area will also appear above the grid. You can toggle the total area on or off by using the button in the upper lefthand corner.

This tool is great for students who are just beginning to study area, or for individual practice. Here are some ideas for using it:

• Model multiplication problems. Use the area tool to display a concrete example of multiplication problem and allow students to make the transition from counting to counting groups of the same number
• Have students toggle off the total area. Then, ask students to use the tool to model a problem. For example, ask them to model a room that’s 8 yards long and 4 yards wide. After modeling and solving for the area, they can toggle the area back on to check their answer.
• Ask students to create their own area problem after making a rectangle or square with the tool. Have students challenge a peer with their problems and then check their work together using the tool.
• Challenge students to find 2 or more ways to achieve the same total area with differently shaped rectangles.

Visit classplayground.com for more resources and printables related to area. For more interactives on geometry visit mathmine.com.

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This online angle creator allows students to explore and view four different angles at once. The tool is great for teaching children about the degrees of an angle and nomenclature of angles such as obtuse and acute.

To use the interactive online angle tool, click and drag any of the points. This will change all of the angles at once. Each angle is represented by a different color to make them easy to differentiate. Students will quickly realize that the opposite angles are always the same.

Teachers can use the interactive online angle tool for individual or whole class work, by projecting it on a smartboard. Here are a few ways to use the tool:

• Ask students to name adjacent angles by saying the colors of the angles.
• Ask students to name opposite angles by saying the colors of the angles.
• Ask students to add adjacent or opposite angles to get the sum
• Ask students to form ninety degree angles or angles of other measurements using the tool.
• Ask students to solve for the unknown angle if the adjacent or opposite angle is X. Then, have them check their answer using the interactive online angle tool.

To learn more about angles, explore printables on classplayground.com. For more interactives on geometry visit mathmine.com.

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This interactive online protractor makes it easy for students to learn how to measure angles.

Toggle the degree function off or on by clicking the button in the top right hand corner. To view only an angle tool, toggle the protractor off by clicking the button on the upper left hand side. Change the angle by clicking and dragging the dotted circles as desired.

When students are learning to use a protractor, it can be helpful to use the degree function. Then, as they learn to use the tool, you can have them try turning it off. They can always turn the function back on to check their work.

Here are a few ways to use the interactive online protractor:

• Ask students to create and measure 5 acute angles using the protractor.
• Ask students to create and measure 5 obtuse angles using the protractor.
• Ask students to create specific angles without using the degree function. For example, create an angle that measures 132 degrees.

To learn more about angles, explore printables on classplayground.com. For more interactives on geometry visit mathmine.com.

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Create like never before with this virtual geoboard shape tool. Make polygons of all sorts or try your hand at circular designs. The sky’s the limit with this unique online geometry tool.

First, choose your board type by tapping on the “array 10×10” button and selecting from the options. Use the pencil tool to draw shapes on the board. When you return to the gray dot, your shape will close. Change colors by tapping on the color blocks. Tap the circular color button to select a shade. The paint bucket can be used to change the color of your shapes after making them. Use the hand tool to move any shape. Clear the canvas using the trashcan tool. From left to right, the tools on the second row rotate your shape, make it grow bigger or smaller, flip it horizontally or vertically, or duplicate it.

The online geoboard is much more flexible than traditional boards. Plus, you’ll never run out of rubber bands (or have to worry about students flicking them at each other)! Invite students to explore geometric shapes and also explore their artistic side with the online geoboard. From following patterns and exploring the math behind art, the possibilities are endless

Use the virtual geoboard in conjunction with the many geoboard patterns and printables available at classplayground.com.

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Dating back hundreds of years, tangram puzzles use seven shapes in various combinations to build pictures. These virtual tangrams offer tons of opportunities for kids to practice spatial rotation and explore the relationships between shapes.  Our tangram virtual manipulative was developed using physics to allow for the feel of concrete pieces, as they can be rotated, moved around, and bumped into each other.  More than ten different puzzles are included; see if you can solve them all!

Also check out our pattern blocks virtual manipulative for more practice building geometric thinking!

Visit classplayground.com for more information about Tangrams and Printables.

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Are you looking for a fun way to explore spatial relationships and geometrical concepts with your students? Try using a geoboard!

Our virtual geoboard gives you all the fun and learning that comes with geoboards without the mess or stress. Because let’s be honest, do you really want to unleash rubber bands into your classroom? It’s an invitation for disaster (veteran teacher Marilyn Burns can attest to that!).

Using the virtual geoboard is easy. Select the color you want to use by clicking on the color squares on the right hand side. Then select a point on the geoboard and drag to another point to make a line. Swipe right or left on the templates to choose one to copy, or create something new!

With the virtual geoboard, you can explore concepts such as:

• Symmetry
• Perimeter and Area
• Basic shapes and polygons
• Learning and reinforcing directional and positional words (up, down, right, left, vertical, horizontal, diagonal, etc.)

Visit classplayground.com for geoboard printables. We have also collected the geoboard pattern printables into a book, available from Amazon.

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Perimeter and area are basic concepts in geometry. Yet, to master them, students need plenty of practice. Our free online interactive area and perimeter game is perfect for helping your students master these concepts.

Using the interactive area and perimeter game is intuitive and easy. Click and drag the colored blocks onto the grid to create rectangles or irregular shapes. The tool will automatically show students the totals of the perimeter and area in the upper left hand corner of shapes of the same color. Perimeter sums also appear along the edge of the shape. You can toggle these features on and off using the “Hide Totals” and “Hide Perimeter” buttons in the top right hand corner. If you create several shapes, you can click on them to show the perimeter and area of each one. Clear the grid using the trash can button.

Offer students a given perimeter or area and see how many different ways they can achieve those totals with the blocks.

Visit classplayground.com for more resources and printables related to perimeter and area. For more interactives on geometry visit mathmine.com..

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Are you ready to build? Use your imagination and create a castle, pool, park, or something else completely.

The online cube builder helps students develop many different skills including spatial reasoning, creativity, problem-solving, and an understanding of 3D objects. Using the 3D cube builder is easy after you experiment with it for a bit. This key will help you:

• Plus Button: Adds new cubes to the space
• Hammer: After selecting this button, you can remove specific cubes.
• Crosshairs: Centers your creation. Simply click once.
• Paint bucket: After choosing a different color in the top right hand color selector, click on the block of your choice. It will paint the block that color.
• Dropper: Use the dropper to select a color from one of the blocks. Then, with the color selected, you can then choose the paint bucket to use the color again.
• Trash can: Use this button to start over. You can also use this tool to reset the activity if you’ve deleted all of the cubes.
• More: Located in the bottom left-hand corner, press this button to select from the drop-down menu. Of particular interest is the duplicate tool. With this tool, you can click on your project to add another block of the same style right beside the other one. Use the rotate tool to turn or twist a block in different directions.

Remember, when selecting tools, they will show up highlighted in yellow. This will help you determine which tool is active at any given moment.

What will you build?

Visit classplayground.com for more resources and printables related to geometry.

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