Perimeter is the walk around the outside
Add up every side. For a rectangle that is length + width + length + width. It is a distance, so it is measured in cm or m.
Class 4 to 10 · 72 games
Area and perimeter, explained with pictures
How much space a shape covers, and how far it is around the edge.
In everyday life: Tiles to cover a floor, fencing around a field, wrapping paper for a gift.
Area is how many squares fit inside
A rectangle 4 cm by 3 cm holds 12 little 1 cm squares, so its area is 12 square cm. That is why area is length times width.
Same perimeter does not mean same area
A 1 by 5 rectangle and a 3 by 3 square both have a perimeter of 12, but the square holds 9 squares and the thin one only 5.
A worked example
A rectangle is 6 m long and 2 m wide. What is its area?
12 square metres
Six columns of two squares each, so 6 x 2 = 12 squares fit inside.
Words to know
- perimeter
- The total distance around the edge of a shape.
- area
- The amount of surface a shape covers, counted in squares.
In the games
You will work out the area and the perimeter of rectangles, and match shapes to the right measurement.
Skills
- Area of a rectangle · Class 5
- Perimeter of a rectangle · Class 5
- Volume of a cuboid, counted in layers · Class 5
- Nets of a cube, and views of a stack · Class 5
- Area of a triangle, parallelogram and trapezium · Class 7
- Circumference and area of a circle · Class 7
- Surface area and volume of a box and a tin · Class 8
- Heron's formula · Class 9
- Cones, spheres and hemispheres · Class 9
- Areas related to circles · Class 10
- Surface area and volume of combined solids · Class 10
By class
Class 4 area and perimeter (6) · Class 5 area and perimeter (24) · Class 6 area and perimeter (1) · Class 7 area and perimeter (15) · Class 8 area and perimeter (4) · Class 9 area and perimeter (12) · Class 10 area and perimeter (10)
Practise area and perimeter in Tivumo
No download, no account for your child. Classes 3 to 12, more than 1,000 games.