Lesson 3.2 Круг, квадра́т, треуго́льник: Shapes

Steps

1. Warm-up

   Do this together: Look around the room for a circle, a square and a triangle. Today you learn their names in Russian.

2. Teach the new idea

   Read aloud: The story. The prophet Isaiah wrote that God sits above the circle of the earth, and that He stretched out the heavens like a curtain and spread them out like a tent. God is the great designer: He made the round sun and moon, the six-sided snowflake and the star. When we draw shapes, we copy what He made first.

   Read aloud: How Russian sounds. Круг is krook: the г sounds like k at the end. Квадра́т is kvah-DRAHT. Треуго́льник is tree-oo-GOHL’-neek: три (three) + у́гол (corner). Звезда́ is star, and се́рдце is heart, said SYEHR-tseh.

   Read aloud: Size and color together. Size words match like colors do. Большо́й (big) becomes больша́я and большо́е; ма́ленький (small) becomes ма́ленькая and ма́ленькое. Put them together: большо́й кра́сный круг (a big red circle), ма́ленькая жёлтая звезда́ (a small yellow star), большо́е ро́зовое се́рдце (a big pink heart).

3. New words

   Do this: Say each word clearly; your child says it back twice. Point to a picture or the real thing when you can.

   • круг [krook]: circle
   • квадра́т [kvahd-RAHT]: square
   • треуго́льник [tree-oo-GOHL-neek]: triangle
   • се́рдце [SYEHR-tseh]: heart
   • большо́й [bahl-SHOHY]: big
   • ма́ленький [MAH-leen-keey]: small
4. Show how

   Show: Describe a small red heart.

   Say this: “Се́рдце ends in - е : neuter.”

   Say this: “Neuter: ма́ленькое, кра́сное.”

   Answer: Ма́ленькое кра́сное се́рдце.

   Show: Describe a big green triangle.

   Say this: “Треуго́льник is masculine.”

   Say this: “Masculine: большо́й, зелёный.”

   Answer: Большо́й зелёный треуго́льник.

5. Practice together

   Do this: Ask out loud. Let your child try first; help only after a real try.

   Ask: Say circle in Russian.

   Listen for: Круг.

   Ask: Say square in Russian.

   Listen for: Квадра́т.

   Ask: Say triangle in Russian. What does it mean literally?

   Listen for: Треуго́льник : three-corner.

   3 more on the lesson page.

6. Project: Shape mosaic

   Read aloud: Make a picture from paper shapes and describe each one in Russian.

   Steps:

   1. Cut out circles, squares, triangles, stars and hearts of different sizes and colors.
   2. Arrange them into a picture: a house, a church, a train or a face.
   3. Glue them down.
   4. Point to each shape and describe it: большо́й си́ний квадра́т, ма́ленькая жёлтая звезда́.

   Tips for you:

   • Count the shapes of each kind and say the numbers in Russian.

   Done when your child can say:

   • My mosaic uses five shapes.
   • I can describe each with a size and a color.
7. Sketchbook

   Do this: Your child picks one or more; you write the date.

   1. In your notebook, draw the five shapes and write their names. Then write three descriptions with a size and a color.
8. From history

   Read aloud: The domes of Russian churches are often shaped like onions, and the Russian Orthodox cross has three crossbars. The small top bar stands for the sign over Jesus’ head, and the slanted bottom bar is a footrest.

9. Watch for
   • Saying krug with a g. At the end of a word г sounds like k: krook.
   • Mixing the endings when there are two words: большо́й кра́сная звезда́. Both match: больша́я кра́сная звезда́.
10. Game: Shape hunt

    Set a timer for three minutes. Find as many shapes in the house as you can, and describe each in Russian with a color (кра́сный круг!). One point for each correct description.

11. Narration

    Say this: “Tell me what you learned today.”

    Listen for: Name five shapes in Russian.; Use большо́й and ма́ленький with the right ending.; Describe a thing with a size, a color and a shape.

12. Scripture

    It is he that sitteth upon the circle of the earth, and the inhabitants thereof are as grasshoppers; that stretcheth out the heavens as a curtain, and spreadeth them out as a tent to dwell in:

    Russian Synodal Bible (1876): <i class="ru-bible" lang="ru">Он есть Тот, Который восседает над кругом земли</i> God sits above the circle of the earth. He designed the whole world, every shape and every star.

Spread over the week

3 sessions of 20–30 minutes. Stop while it is still going well.

1. Session 1. Warm-up, then read and teach the new idea and the new words. Show how.
2. Session 2. Practice together, then start the project. Finish the project, then the sketchbook.
3. Session 3. Narration, the game and the Scripture.