Grade 1: Measures of Turn

Warm up with a quick recall on the board. Act out quarter, half, three-quarter and full turns with the body, linking each to degrees (90°, 180°, 270°, 360°) and to clockwise vs anticlockwise.

A turn is a rotation, and young students measure it in fractions of a full circle: a quarter turn, a half turn, a three-quarter turn and a full turn. This is the first idea of angle and of direction (clockwise or anticlockwise), and it links to the points of the compass and to telling the time. Model the method clearly, thinking aloud:

• Have students turn their own bodies: a full turn brings you back to facing the start, a half turn faces you the opposite way.
• Fix the fractions to the circle: a quarter turn is a right angle, two quarters make a half, four quarters make a full turn.
• Teach direction: clockwise follows the clock's hands, anticlockwise is the other way.
• Link to compass points: from north, a quarter turn clockwise faces east, a half turn faces south.
• Practise describing the turn between two directions, and reading turns on a clock face.

Work this through step by step on the board, then have the class talk you through a second one.

• Facing north, make a half turn clockwise:
• a quarter turn -> east
• another quarter -> south
• a half turn is two quarter turns
• you now face south

Do the first few questions of the practice worksheet together, one child explaining each step. Check for understanding before releasing the class to work alone.

Students complete the worksheet independently. Hand out the three difficulty levels below so every child works at the right stretch.

Circulate and look for these, they are the usual sticking points:

• Mixing up clockwise and anticlockwise.
• Thinking a half turn is a right angle (a quarter turn is the right angle, a half turn is two).
• Losing track of the starting direction.
• Confusing a quarter turn with turning by only a small amount.
• Muddling clockwise and anticlockwise, and confusing the fraction of a turn with the number of quarters.

Pull the class back together. Ask one child to explain measures of turn in their own words, pose a single check question everyone answers on a mini whiteboard, and name what you will build on next lesson.

Use the independent worksheet as the evidence. A child who can complete it accurately and explain one answer has met the objective; anyone who cannot needs the easier level and a short reteach next session.