New
New
Year 5

Measure the area of flat shapes using square centimetres

I can measure the area of shapes using square centimetres.

New
New
Year 5

Measure the area of flat shapes using square centimetres

I can measure the area of shapes using square centimetres.

Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. Area can be measured in square centimetres.
  2. You write square centimetres as cm²
  3. Fractions of square centimetres can be added to make whole square centimetres.

Common misconception

Some pupils count fractions of a square, such as a right-angles triangle, as a whole square unit.

Cut out the shape to show that two ‘parts’ of a square sometimes go together to make a complete square unit.

Keywords

  • Square centimetres - Square centimetres are the area equal to a square that is one centimetre on each side.

  • Rectilinear - A rectilinear shape is a 2D shape with straight sides and right angles.

A useful way to give pupils an idea of the magnitude of a square metre when compared with a squared centimetre is placing a 1 cm cube inside four metre sticks put together to make a square shape.
Teacher tip

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2024), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

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6 Questions

Q1.
To which mathematical term does this definition belong?   is the measurement of a flat surface. It measures a 2D space.  
Correct answer: Area 
Perimeter 
Polygon 
Ruler
Q2.
Which shape is most commonly used to measure area?
Triangle
Rectangle
Correct answer: Square
Circle
Q3.
What is the missing number?   6, 12, 18, , 30 
Correct Answer: 24, twenty four
Q4.
Order the following units of length from smallest to largest
1 - mm
2 - cm
3 - m
4 - km
Q5.
Match the image with the correct description.
An image in a quiz
Correct Answer:rectangle,b

b

Correct Answer:rectilinear,c

c

Correct Answer:non-rectilinear,a

a

Q6.
Match the shapes with their correct areas in square units.
An image in a quiz
Correct Answer:7 cm²,b

b

Correct Answer:12 cm²,a

a

Correct Answer:8 cm²,c

c

6 Questions

Q1.
Order the following areas from largest to smallest.
1 - square km
2 - square m
3 - square cm
4 - square mm
Q2.
Match the item with the square unit that would be the most useful for finding its area.
Correct Answer:square km,a small town

a small town

Correct Answer:square mm,the surface of a daisy petal

the surface of a daisy petal

Correct Answer:square m,the floor in a bathroom

the floor in a bathroom

Correct Answer:square cm,a phone screen

a phone screen

Q3.
Which of these is another way of writing 'square centimetres'?
2 cm
Correct answer: cm²
cm2
Q4.
Which of these is the best estimate for the area of the front of a note book?
10,000 cm²
10 cm²
1,000 cm²
Correct answer: 100 cm²
Q5.
What is the area of this shape? cm²
An image in a quiz
Correct Answer: 20 , 20 cm², 20 square centimetres, twenty
Q6.
What is the area of this shape? cm²
An image in a quiz
Correct Answer: 25, 25 cm², 25 square centimetres, twenty five