FLAG MOTIF · 09
How Many Stars? Five Flags Compared
How many stars can you find?
Look beyond the number: where are the stars, and how are they arranged?
LOOK · COUNT · REVEAL
Find the stars, then try counting them
Start with a flag that is easy to count. For a flag with many stars, notice how they are grouped—you do not need to count them all.
Counted the stars? Reveal the answer
STEP 1 · COUNT
How many stars does each flag have?
Vietnam
1star
One yellow five-pointed star in the centre of a red flag.
China
5stars
Five yellow stars in the upper flagpole-side corner: one large star and four small ones.
Singapore
5stars
Five equally sized white stars form a circle beside the crescent moon.
Cape Verde
10stars
Ten yellow five-pointed stars form a circle towards the flagpole side of the flag.
United States
50stars
Fifty white stars fill the blue area in the upper flagpole-side corner.
Finding a star is the first step. Counting the stars gives you another way to compare flags.
STEP 2 · SAME NUMBER, DIFFERENT ARRANGEMENT
Five stars on both flags. Do they look the same?
China
Five yellow stars in the upper flagpole-side corner: one large star and four small ones.
Singapore
Five equally sized white stars form a circle beside the crescent moon.
China's four small stars curve around the large star on its right. Singapore's stars form a circle beside the crescent. The number is the same; their sizes and arrangement are different.
STEP 3 · STARS IN A CIRCLE
Two circles of stars. What changes?
Singapore
Five equally sized white stars form a circle beside the crescent moon.
Cape Verde
Ten yellow five-pointed stars form a circle towards the flagpole side of the flag.
Singapore has five white stars beside the crescent. Cabo Verde has ten yellow stars in a circle across the blue area and the stripes. Even in a circle, the number, colour and position can change.
Cabo Verde's government explains that its ten stars represent the archipelago's ten islands.
STEP 4 · ONE AND FIFTY
One central star, or many stars together?
Vietnam
One yellow five-pointed star in the centre of a red flag.
United States
Fifty white stars fill the blue area in the upper flagpole-side corner.
Vietnam places one large star in the centre. The United States groups fifty stars in the blue corner. Notice the difference in both number and position.
USA.gov explains that the fifty stars represent the fifty states.
STEP 5 · THREE WAYS TO LOOK
What will you look for next time?
① How many stars?
Try counting them or noticing how many there seem to be.
② Where are they?
Look at the centre, the corners and the flagpole side.
③ What pattern do they make?
Look for a circle, rows or stars grouped around another star.
The same star shape can look very different. Number and arrangement help you discover what makes each flag distinct.
PUBLIC SOURCES
Check the stars in official sources
Explore the five countries
Can you find another way of arranging stars?
When you find a star on another flag, try looking at its number, position and pattern.