We all use mirrors and know we have right and left hands, feet, and more. That’s part of symmetry and mirror images. It’s a math concept that means two sides of a whole are alike. Spring flowers and butterflies make pointing out symmetry in nature easy. Take a nature walk and notice symmetry in leaves, flowers, birds, and even seeds. Pine cones are more than symmetrical as looking from the bottom up you can see there’s a spiral and that actually is in a sequence called Fibonacci sequence where the numbers in the spiral is a mathematical pattern.

Do some fun exercises with children that involves symmetry.

• Make symmetrical art. Cut a folded paper to make a butterfly. Then drop paint onto one side and close the butterfly. Press it gently and open it to see how the paint spread in symmetry also. Fold paper and cut a snowflake and examine the symmetry of each section.

• Shapes. Cut various shapes and see if children can pick out which ones are symmetrical. Turn the paper or cutouts of shapes to see that they are still symmetrical. Use the cutouts or symmetrical shapes to make figures that are also symmetrical. So, two triangles and two squares can be used to make two symmetrical houses.

• #D Symmetry. Blocks are 3D shapes that are often symmetrical. You can use rubber bands to divide a block in half to show the symmetry. You can also cut real objects into symmetrical parts like a tray of brownies or a pie.

• Mirror Fun. Draw half a square and hold the edge to a mirror to see the other half appear. Hold an object up to a mirror at various angles to find symmetry.

• Look at a quilt or pictures of quilts and notice the symmetry of the pattern used. Can they find symmetry in patterns on their clothes?

• Faces are symmetrical, so let children explore making faces with pompom eyes, clothespin noses, and other objects. Do one side of the face and have them do the other side? Or place a stick on the ground and see if you can place objects on either side to create something symmetrical.

Explore a little a-symmetry too where something like a skirt may be longer on one side than another side and the object cannot be divided evenly. Look at clouds and notice they are seldom symmetrical. Cut a heart on folded paper and see that it is symmetrical. Then draw a heart that is asymmetrical. Discuss the differences.

Have fun exploring!

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