How can you tell they’ve got it: Composing Shapes?

If they’ve got it, you’ll see things like: Combine two triangles to form a rectangle or larger triangle; Put together half-circles and quarter-circles to form circles or new shapes; Decompose a composite shape and describe which simpler shapes make it up. Or just try it together: Can your child use flat shapes like triangles and rectangles to fit together and make a new larger shape — like a puzzle?

Mathematics Geometry Ages 6–7

Composing Shapes

Your child can fit flat shapes together to make new ones. They can join triangles and half-circles, then take them apart again.

In curriculum terms

Compose two-dimensional shapes (rectangles, squares, trapezoids, triangles, half-circles, quarter-circles) to create composite shapes, and compose new shapes from the composite shape

Ages are typical, not deadlines — follow your child’s pace. How to help at home →

How to tell they’ve got it

Tick these off as you see them — no test required.

Combine two triangles to form a rectangle or larger triangle
Put together half-circles and quarter-circles to form circles or new shapes
Decompose a composite shape and describe which simpler shapes make it up

🖨 Print this page to keep the checklist — it prints beautifully.

Try this together

Can your child use flat shapes like triangles and rectangles to fit together and make a new larger shape — like a puzzle?

Where this sits on the map

Stuck here? Check the skills it builds on first. Confident? Here’s what it unlocks.

Builds on

2-D shapesages 4–6Need to recognise 2-D shapes before composing them into composites

Combining Simple Shapesages 5–6Composing 2-D shapes at Grade 1 level extends the Kindergarten concept of composing simple shapes

Composing Shapesthis skill · ages 6–7

Unlocks

Nothing on the map depends on this yet.

solid = must come firstdashed = helps

Curriculum alignment

Where this fits in the official school curriculum — our best automated guess, not yet checked by a person.

Show candidate curriculum codes · 1 ACARA · 2 NSW · 3 VIC

Australian Curriculum v9 candidate

AC9MFSP01low confidenceFoundation · Space

sort, name and create familiar shapes; recognise and describe familiar shapes within objects in the environment, giving reasons

NSW syllabus codes & stages only

MAE-2DS-01medium confidenceMathematics K-10 · Early Stage 1

MA2-2DS-02medium confidenceMathematics K-10 · Stage 2

Victorian Curriculum 2.0 codes & levels only

VC2MFSP01low confidenceMathematics · Foundation · Space strand

VC2M2M02low confidenceMathematics · Level 2 · Measurement strand

VC2M2SP01low confidenceMathematics · Level 2 · Space strand

These are candidate alignments generated by semantic matching — machine-suggested and unreviewed (v0.1), not official or verified mappings. For official curriculum content see australiancurriculum.edu.au, curriculum.nsw.edu.au and f10.vcaa.vic.edu.au. Don’t rely on them for registration or compliance purposes.

Nearby on the map

2-D faces on 3-D shapesages 6–7 2-D shapesages 6–7 Angles in trianglesages 6–7 Building with 3-D Shapesages 6–7

All Geometry skills →