Grade 3 · Math · Unit 14 of 15

Slides, Flips & Turns

Translations, reflections and rotations of shapes.

What your child practises

Telling a slide (translation), a flip (reflection) and a turn (rotation) apart, and knowing the shape stays the same size.

Nunavut Curriculum approved guide: Nunavut Mathematics K–6 (2025), 3.SS.3.3 · translations in patterns and designs

How we explain it

Children can open this short lesson before they practise.

A slide moves a shape in a straight line.
A flip makes a mirror image. A turn spins it around a point.
The size and shape do not change.

Example: A skater spins around on one spot. Which move is it? It goes around a point. That is a turn. Answer: A turn

Sample questions

A taste of this unit. In the app, questions change every time and get easier or harder to match your child.

Question 1
A letter “b” is flipped over a vertical line. Which letter does it look like?
🔤
- p
- q
- d
- b
Question 2
A chair is pushed straight along the floor. Which move is it?
🪑
- reflection
- rotation
- translation
Question 3
Which move could you do by tracing a shape and flipping the tracing paper over?
📄
- rotation
- translation
- reflection
Question 4
A drawer slides open. Which move is it?
🗄️
- reflection
- rotation
- translation
Question 5
A square slides to the right, then slides down. Which moves are these?
⬜
- a reflection and a rotation
- two translations
- two reflections
- two rotations
Question 6
A sled glides straight down a hill. Which move is it?
🛷
- translation
- reflection
- rotation