What's the difference between a cube and a rectangular prism?

A cube's six faces are all identical squares. If the box is longer in any direction, it's a rectangular prism. Every cube is a prism, but not the other way around.

Why do the drawings have dashed lines?

The dashes show hidden edges, the ones you would only see if the solid were see-through. They help a flat drawing read as a three-dimensional object.

1st grade identifying 3d shapes

1st grade identifying 3d shapes worksheets

First grade sheets drop the flat-or-solid warm-up and grow the solid set: rectangular prisms and pyramids join cubes, spheres, cones, and cylinders. Each problem shows one solid drawn in wireframe with dashed hidden edges and three names to circle.

Free printable PDF worksheet, aligned to Common Core 1.G.A.1.

Each print is a different sheet with its own answer key. You don't need to sign up.

The kind of problems you'll get

Name each solid shape.

Which solid is shaped like a ball?
Answer: A sphere.

Most problems on this sheet sit beside a picture, model or diagram, so this is the worked example the sheet itself prints. The answer key on page two prints the answer under every problem.

Every print pulls a fresh set of problems at this level, so a make-up test or a second sibling never gets the same sheet.

What's on a 1st grade sheet

The sample sheet above has 8 problems. This sheet is aligned to 1.G.A.1. The kindergarten sheet is aligned to K.G.A.2, K.G.A.3.

Identifying 3d shapes. Name each solid shape. 8 problems per page.

Every version prints on US Letter or A4, with its answer key after the problems.

How to teach this

The new solids are the sneaky ones. When rectangular prism shows up, ask whether every face is a square. If any face is longer than it is wide, it can't be a cube. For pyramids, trace the triangle faces meeting at a point with a finger. The dashed lines show the edges you would see if the solid were glass.

Watch for: Kids call every box a cube. A cube's faces are all squares, so a longer box is a rectangular prism, not a cube. Kids name solids by their flat faces, calling a cylinder a circle. The circle is just one face of it; the whole solid is a cylinder.

Common questions about 1st grade identifying 3d shapes

What's the difference between a cube and a rectangular prism?: A cube's six faces are all identical squares. If the box is longer in any direction, it's a rectangular prism. Every cube is a prism, but not the other way around.
Why do the drawings have dashed lines?: The dashes show hidden edges, the ones you would only see if the solid were see-through. They help a flat drawing read as a three-dimensional object.

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Aligned to Common Core 1.G.A.1. Reviewed by the One more sheet team. Content version 240, updated September 2026.

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