Shape Puzzles

Fit the shapes into the quilt. Hear each shape's name.

Which quilt?
For grown-ups

Your child fits fabric shapes into a quilt square: tap a piece and it glides into place, turning to fit, or drag it there. The voice names each shape and counts its sides. A piece that doesn't fit settles back while the voice compares the two shapes; there is no losing, no timer and nothing to collect. A round is 6 quilt squares, then it stops.

Child lock: tap the lock at the top right. The ways out hide and the back button stays in the game. To unlock, hold the lock for 3 seconds and answer a sum.

Shape sorter (age 3): a circle, a square, a triangle and a rectangle in each picture. Pattern pictures (4 to 5): a fish, a rocket or an owl made of pattern-block shapes. Big shapes (5 to 6): fill a hexagon, a trapezoid, a diamond or a big triangle with smaller shapes, then find another way.

Evening look (dimmer and warmer)

Why it's good for your child, what they learn, and how we designed it

Free, no ads, no sign-in. We count plays without names or anything that identifies your child, and your child is never recorded. Every picture is drawn in code.

Why it's good for your child

Puzzles, blocks and shape games build spatial skills, and spatial skills are linked to early math (Verdine et al. 2014, "Blocks, puzzles, and shapes fuel school readiness"). In one study, toddlers who played with puzzles more often did better on spatial tasks at 4½ (Levine et al.), partly because of the shape talk the play brought out. Shape Puzzles names every shape out loud and gives you a line to keep that shape talk going at the table.

What they learn

Shape names (circle, square, triangle, rectangle, hexagon, trapezoid, rhombus), how pieces turn to fit, and that small shapes build big ones: two triangles make a diamond, and two trapezoids make a hexagon. These are Common Core K.G.A.2 (name shapes) and K.G.B.6 (compose simple shapes into larger ones), and 1.G.A.2 for the oldest.

How we designed it for ages 3 to 6

Three-year-olds start with a plain shape sorter: four big pieces and one spot each, and the voice asks for one shape at a time. The pieces turn themselves into place, because precise dragging is hard under 5 (Hiniker 2015), and each move is one slow glide with nothing looping, after fast cartoons lowered 4-year-olds' attention right after (Lillard & Peterson 2011). A piece that doesn't fit settles back while the voice counts its sides, with no buzzer and nothing to collect, and a round stops after 6 quilt squares on "All done" (Radesky 2022 found 65% of apps for 3 to 5 year olds stretched play with tricks).

About the game

Shape Puzzles is a free shapes game for toddlers and preschoolers, made like a wooden shape sorter and pattern blocks. Your child taps a fabric piece and it glides into its spot in the quilt, turning on the way, or drags it there. The voice says the shape's name and counts its sides: "Triangle! Three sides."

Three quilts, easy first

  • Shape sorter (age 3): a sun, a house, a boat, a snowman, a clock and a cart, each with one circle, square, triangle and rectangle. The voice asks for one shape at a time.
  • Pattern pictures (ages 4 and 5): a fish, a rocket, an owl and more, made from hexagons, trapezoids, diamonds (rhombuses), triangles and squares.
  • Big shapes (ages 5 and 6): the inner lines are gone. Fill a diamond, a trapezoid, a big triangle and a hexagon with smaller pieces, then make the same shape another way: two trapezoids, three diamonds or six triangles all make a hexagon.

How a round goes

A round is 6 quilt squares, then "All done" shows the finished quilt with a kitten asleep under it and a line for you to talk about together. Before you hand over the phone, tap the lock at the top right. More: how we build calm games, questions parents ask.

Questions parents ask

Is Shape Puzzles free?

Yes. There is no sign-in, nothing to download and nothing to buy inside the game. It runs in the web browser on phones, tablets and computers.

What happens when my child picks the wrong shape?

The piece settles back and the voice compares the two shapes, for example: "That's a square, four sides. This spot needs three sides." There is no buzzer, no losing and no timer. After a pause or two tries, the spot's outline gets thicker.

How long is a round?

6 quilt squares, then the game stops on an All done screen with the finished quilt and a line for you to talk about together. Nothing starts by itself.