Which letters are symmetrical

What makes a letter or object symmetrical? What are examples of symmetry in nature? What are examples of symmetrical manufactured objects? How can you test for symmetry? Review the definition of symmetry and ask the class to suggest examples of symmetry in the natural and the manufactured world for example: human faces, butterflies, a bookshelf, maybe even the school building.

This means that the bottom of the letters is a reflection of the top. This means that the right side is a reflection of the left. Some vertically symmetrical words are:. Details Activity Length mins. Those letters cannot be folded in half in any way with the parts matching up. Some letters look the same when facing a mirror. Regarding this, what letters in the alphabet have rotational symmetry? The letters Z, S, H and N, when rotated degrees clockwise or counterclockwise, will look the same after rotation completion.

Closely related to palindromes, symmetrical words are words that have an axis of symmetry, or point of rotational symmetry. Needless to say, it is relevant whether the word is written in upper or lower case. A line of symmetry is a line that divides the given shape into identical parts. Remaining numbers do not have any lines of symmetry.

The American flag is an example of asymmetry. Breast asymmetry refers to the appearance of a part of the breast in comparison to the remainder of that breast and to the other breast.

A radiologist will examine a mammogram to look at the difference in position, volume and form of the breasts. Asymmetrical balance in art is when each half is different but has equal visual weight. The artwork is still balanced. For example, in the Caravaggio the picture in the right in the collage , the three men are balanced with Jesus on the left.

Which letters have zero lines of symmetry? Which letters have one line of symmetry? Which letters have two lines of symmetry? Enter your answers below. The F and G have zero lines of symmetry. Those letters cannot be folded in half in any way with the parts matching up. Notice that the A has a vertical line of symmetry, while the B, C, D, and E have a horizontal line of symmetry.

Let's look at some more letters! Think about whether any of these letters might have 2 lines of symmetry. J, K, L, N, and P have zero lines of symmetry. M has one line of symmetry, and H, I, and O have 2 lines of symmetry. Did you get them all right? Well before children begin any formal study of symmetry, playing with mirrors — perhaps on Pattern Block designs that they build — develops experience and intuition that can serve both their geometric thinking and their artistic ideas.

The colorful design above has only vertical and horizontal lines of symmetry, but placing a mirror on it at another angle can create a beautiful new design. More intrepid experiments give other interesting results. Note that some figures, like the star and the colorful blob at the top of the page, but not the letters N, Z, or S, have both reflective and rotational symmetry. A circle has infinitely many lines of symmetry: any diameter lies on a line of symmetry through the center of the circle.

Any rotation of any amount around the center of the circle also leaves the circle unchanged. Symmetry Topics: Mathematical Language.