Math Story : Introduction to angles
When Squarho Is Hungry
It is a bright and sunny day. A day well suited for some playtime. And that’s what the kids have been doing. They are out playing and enjoying each other’s company.
“Hey! I am hungry. Do you have anything to eat?” says Squarho. Sadly, nobody has anything to offer him. But that doesn’t stop him. When Squarho is hungry, he is the most active person of all. He decides to find something edible around him.
Suddenly, he spots a huge apple tree full of fresh red apples. “Wow these look tempting”, he says to himself. He calls his friends and shows them the tree. “But how will we get the apples?” questions Cirha. “How about we make a tower and reach the apples”, suggests Cirho. Everybody agrees to go ahead with the idea.
Since Squarho has straight edges, he decides to stand first. Triho stands on him. Cirha stands on Triho, and Cirho stands on Cirha. Do you think they would have got the apples?
Bang! They fall badly! They could not make a steady tower because of the curved and pointed edges. “What do we do now?” says Squarho. He is even more hungry now.
“Hey! Let us throw these stones at the apples. The hard throw will make the apples fall, and we will be able to grab them”, says Triho! Now, this sounds like a foolproof plan. Do you think this time they will get the apples?
Being excited about this idea, Cirho decides to go first. He grabs the stone and aims it at the apples. Plop! The stone falls close to the tree but does not reach the apples. Cirho is disappointed.
Triho and Cirha go next. Cirha’s stone reaches the tree but does not hit the apple. Triho’s stone touches the apple, but it does not fall. They are disappointed again.
Finally, Squarho decides to try. He grabs the stone and aims it right. He throws it so hard that the stone crosses the tree and hits the window of the house behind. Crash! The window glass breaks.
“Oh no!” they scream. This might not be good for them.
Hearing the loud crash, Uncle Math comes out to see. Oh, it is his window that has been hit. He rushes to find out who has done this. Will he scold the kids for this?
Seeing the kids scared, he decides to not scold them, but rather understand why did they do so? “We wanted to eat those apples”, says Cirho in a low tone and explains everything. Uncle Math bursts into laughter.
“You were not able to hit the apples because your angle of throw was incorrect”, he explains. But the kids do not understand anything. “An angle is formed when two lines meet at a common point. Look here, the sides of the window form an angle. Similarly, can you spot more angles around you?” he says.
“Oh yes! Look here the sides of the door also meet at this point and make an angle”, says Cirha. “And the top of the house also makes an angle”, says Squarho. Excited, Triho tries something different. “Look here, I can make an angle through my hands too. Haha”, he says. This is brilliant.
Everybody continues to look around and spot more angles.
“Wow! There are so many angles around us”, says Cirho. “But, how does angle help in throwing the stone”, questions Triho. Isn’t that a good question? It is indeed. Let us find out what Uncle Math has to say.
“We make an angle with the ground when we throw anything in the air. The larger the angle, the higher your throw will be”, explains Uncle Math. But the kids are confused. “No fear when I am here! This is Ms Angle and she will help us”, he says. Ms Angle? Who is she? Another gadget?
Ms Angle has two flap-like structures that move. Uncle Math opens one of the flaps and drags it to make an angle. He then presses the red button on it. Boom! A red ball comes out of it that directly goes and hits one of the apples. The apple drops to the ground. “Hurray!” say the kids together. They are delighted.
Seeing Uncle Math’s throw work, Squarho decides to try. He pulls the flap wide open and presses the red button. Swoosh! Instead of going straight, the ball goes behind and does not hit the apples. Haha! Silly Squarho. “The apples are in front of you, not behind you”, funnily mocks Cirho.
Cirho tries next. He opens the flap very little and presses the red button. The ball hits the bark of the tree. “Look at the apple and aim better”, says Uncle Math. Cirha comes next. She opens the flap and presses the red button. Boom! One apple drops from the tree. She is elated.
Now they know the trick to form the correct angle and making the throw. They continue their practice with Ms Angle and enjoy eating the apples. Uncle Math decides to get back to work.
The kids could use angles to grab the apples by making the right throw. Can you think of various uses of angles?
We Learnt That…
- An angle is formed when two lines meet at a common point.
- There are many angles around us.
- We make an angle with the ground when we throw anything in the air. The larger the angle, the higher your throw will be.
- Listening to anyone is more important than reacting.
Let’s Discuss
- Who gets hungry?
- How did we decide to get the apples?
- How did Uncle Math help us?
- Who is Ms Angle? Explain the meaning of angle.
- Can you spot angles around you? List them.
- Uncle Math did not scold us but rather heard us first. Is this good? Why or why not?
Please refer this guide by Fun2Do Labs for teaching geometry to kids :
