Geometry Through Art

Table of Contents

Words

Space Words

top / bottom
front / back
near / far
left side / right side
inside / outside
in front of / behind
next to or beside
above / below
to the right / to the left
compass directions: north, NORTHWEST, NORTHEAST; south, SOUTHWEST, SOUTHEAST; east, west
location or LOCUS (a point)


Time/Motion Words

directions (motion): straight up / down, sidewise, slanting (uphill / downhill)
backward / forward (straight line) / spinning at a point
roll or slide / flip / turn
fast / slow
now / later
before / after
hour, half hour, quarter hour, minute, SECOND


Measurement Words

smaller than / bigger than / same size and shape as (CONGRUENT)
longer / shorter
whole / part: half, quarter, eighth, sixteenth, THIRTY-SECOND
unit of measure: inch, meter, percentage, PERIMETER


Geometry/Art Words

dot or point (of a line segment, or 2 line segments that meet from different directions): ANGLE / VERTEX / POINT OF INTERSECTION
geometric line (drawn with a straight edge): RAY, line segment
flat / round (surface), PLANE

Polygon Words: triangle, square, PENTAGON, OCTAGON, DECAGON; PARALLELOGRAM, RHOMBUS

Circle Words: CENTER, RADIUS, CIRCUMFERENCE, DIAMETER, SECTOR, CHORD

Geometric solids: cube, prism, cylinder, sphere, CONE, etc.

Polygon numbers (square and rectangle numbers)
Whole numbers / number line (left to add, right to subtract)

zero (as a point on a number line)
odd / even numbers
congruent lines and shapes
SIMILAR shapes

Art/Design Words: Elements of design: dot, line, shape, direction, movement, color, TONE, pattern, dimension, SCALE

Principles of design: UNITY, VARIETY, BALANCE

History of Geometry

Ancient Egyptians used knotted rope to measure the land.

Thales of Miletus (640-546 B.C.) discovered why and how a square fits perfectly in a circle. He used similar triangles as a way to measure the height of the pyramids.

Many ancient civilizations used geometry to build their most sacred monuments and temples. The geometry of the circle enabled them to develop useful tools for surveying, navigation, astronomy, and handicrafts.

The ancient Greeks compiled their knowledge into an all-time plane geometry best seller published by Euclid about 300 B.C.

Research - some ancient geometers you might like to know more about: Eudoxus (408-355 B.C.) and Heraclitus (about 513 B.C.).

Materials

barbecue sticks and/or toothpicks
line and dot grid worksheets, square and triangular
polyhedral network worksheets printed on tagboard or sturdier paper more suitable for cutting, folding, and constructing
percentage circle worksheets
poker chips
straight edge
scissors
Elmer's Glue
crayons or colored markers

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