Block coding lesson 8: Drawing squares and rectangles
UK version. UK school years and UK spelling. · US version of this lesson
A square has 4 equal sides and 4 corners. Myrtle draws a side, then turns a quarter turn, four times. A complete 35-minute block coding lesson (Years 3–4, KS2), from Unit 3: Drawing with the pen. Myrtle the Turtle runs right here in your browser – nothing to install.
- Time
- 35 minutes + 15 min homework
- Year
- Years 3–4, KS2 (ages 7–9)
- You need
- A computer or tablet, squared paper and a pencil
- Marked
- Instantly, with explanations
For parents: how to use this lesson
You don't need to know anything about coding. The lesson explains each step on screen, the way Mr Babbage, our Head of Computing, likes it: watch Myrtle first, then have a go. Programs are made from blocks – no typing – and every answer is marked straight away.
- Before the screen: Walk a square in the playground or garden: four steps, quarter turn, four times.
- Press Start the lesson below and watch the worked examples together. Press Run and say what each block does before Myrtle does it.
- Let your child do the practice on their own. When Myrtle goes the wrong way, that's a clue, not a failure – press Run again and watch which block it is on.
- Finish with the talk question: “How do you know a shape is a square?”
- Later that day or the next day: the homework (15 minutes), then a practice test.
Watch out for
- Using three turns and wondering why it does not matter. The last turn only matters if you go on drawing – but it puts Myrtle back where she started.
- Mixing up the long and short sides of a rectangle. Say them aloud: long, short, long, short.
Miss Lovelace's tip for home: ask your child to be Myrtle. Read out the blocks and let them walk it on the floor. If they can act it out, they understand it.
What your child will learn
We are learning to draw a square and a rectangle.
Success looks like
- I can draw a square and a rectangle.
- I can explain why a square needs four turns.
- I can fix a shape that does not close.
Key words
square · rectangle · side · corner · right angle
The big ideas (for the adult)
A square has 4 equal sides and 4 corners. Myrtle draws a side, then turns a quarter turn, four times.
A rectangle has two long sides and two short sides: long, turn, short, turn, long, turn, short, turn.
A worked example
move forward 4 turn right move forward 4 turn right move forward 4 turn right move forward 4
Press Start the lesson to watch the turtle run it.
The lesson, step by step
| Part | Time | How it is checked |
|---|---|---|
| Starter | 5 min | Marked by Classfern |
| Teach | 8 min | Watch, talk and try |
| Worked example and try it | 7 min | Marked by Classfern |
| Practice | 10 min | Marked by Classfern |
| Plenary | 5 min | Marked by Classfern + self-check |
The lesson
It runs here on the page. No sign-up and no names – progress is kept only in this browser. Each visit picks a new mix of questions.
Homework
15 minutes: 5 questions – work out what Myrtle does, then build or fix a program – and a short reflection. New questions every time, all marked instantly. Away from the screen: walk a square in the playground or garden: four steps, quarter turn, four times.
Practice tests
Curriculum
National curriculum in England, computing, key stage 2: pupils should be taught to design, write and debug programs that accomplish specific goals, including controlling or simulating physical systems; solve problems by decomposing them into smaller parts; and to use logical reasoning to explain how some simple algorithms work and to detect and correct errors in algorithms and programs.
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Our lessons, blocks and questions are our own. They are not written or endorsed by any government department, testing agency or exam board.