2-D Shapes Worksheets: Properties, Polygons

Year 6 maths worksheets on properties of 2-D shapes and regular polygons: 36 questions in three levels (All, Most, Some) with answers. Free PDF.

7-page A4 PDF from the Tiger Shark Education question bank. All: Draw squares, rectangles and right-angled triangles on a grid. Most: Sort shapes by their properties, and use the properties of rectangles. Some: Recognise regular polygons, sort shapes, and find missing vertices. Each level is two pages of six questions, each with its own diagram and space for working, and the last page has every answer, with the correct drawing for each “draw it” question. Each level is also available as its own 3-page PDF. Example questions from the Some level: Circle the letters of all the regular polygons (all sides and angles equal) / Circle the letters of all the shapes with exactly one pair of parallel sides.

What are 2-D shapes and their properties? 2-D shapes are flat shapes such as triangles, quadrilaterals and other polygons. Their properties include the number of sides, angles, parallel and perpendicular sides, symmetry and whether they are regular (all sides and angles equal). Year 6 pupils compare and classify shapes and know the properties of quadrilaterals.

Common mistakes and tips: Children often think a square is not a rectangle, or that a shape has to look ‘normal’ to count (an upside-down triangle is still a triangle). Others confuse parallel and perpendicular. Sorting shapes using Venn and Carroll diagrams is very effective for discussing properties precisely.

This topic is part of the Year 6 National Curriculum for maths, and it regularly appears on the KS2 SATs papers. The All, Most and Some levels let you check basic fluency first and then move on to the multi-step, contextual questions found on the reasoning papers.

How teachers use these sheets: as a lesson’s independent task, as a starter to revisit a topic from earlier in the year, or as a revision pack in the weeks before the SATs. Children can mark their own work with the answer page, then explain one mistake to a partner to deepen understanding.

Reasoning and explanation: once children can answer the questions, ask them to explain their method to a partner or write a short explanation of one answer. The SATs reasoning papers include ‘explain how you know’ questions, and talking about methods deepens understanding far more than repeating calculations.

Use All for children working towards the expected standard, Most for secure Year 5 skills and Some for SATs-standard practice: three entry points to the same lesson. Suits whole-class differentiation, intervention groups, homework and SATs revision, and upper KS2 generally.

Part of a set of 42 Year 6 maths topics.