Name the Shape

By Jennifer Scotton

We’ve recently embarked upon my 2-year-old son’s potty training journey and have reached the point in the process where he sporadically protests when we ask him to try to use the potty. In order to save our eardrums and redirect what could surely devolve into a temper tantrum, we’ve been having a lot of fun pointing out shapes in ordinary objects as we await the blessed event while he’s on the potty. Our square-shaped air return vent (conveniently located on the wall opposite his potty) has become a favorite to identify the shape and then count the sides. I’ll point to the object and ask, “What shape is that?” He answers with “SQUARE!” and then I’ll ask him if he can count the sides.

He loves this game so much that he now points out shapes unprompted. He even incorporates it into his two-year-old babble while playing quietly. I’ll frequently hear him saying “Thas a big ‘tangle [rectangle]! How many sides? Let’s count! 1, 2, 3, 4 – 4 sides!” It’s especially cute to hear him doing this on his own and gratifying to watch his love of learning and counting.