Year 8 - Maths
Surface area of prisms
Perimeter, area and volume
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This pupil-friendly study guide includes a unit summary, clear notes, common mistakes, and quick questions with answers.
Unit Summary
In this unit pupils extend their knowledge of shapes by exploring the properties of circles and composite shapes before developing understanding of 3-D shapes including surface area and volume.
Lesson Summary
You will learn to find the surface area of 3D shapes in an efficient way.
Key Notes
- The surface area of a 3D shape is the sum of the area of all the faces.
- The net of a prism can help find the surface area of a prism but can be time consuming.
- By using known area facts, the area of all the faces can be found and summed.
- It is important to find the surface area systematically and efficiently.
Vocabulary To Learn
- Prism: polyhedron with base and identical parallel opposite side with corresponding edges joined by parallelograms.
- Faces: Faces are the flat 2D surfaces of a 3D shape.
- Nets: The net of a 3D object is a 2D representation of its faces that can be folded up into the 3D object.
- Surface area: The surface area is the total area of all the surfaces of a closed 3D shape. The surfaces include all faces and any curved surfaces.
Common Mistakes To Avoid
- Pupils may try to avoid sketching of nets or faces and in turn miss information.
3 Quick Questions (With Answers)
1. Solve this in steps: explain the method from this lesson and why each step matters.
The surface area of a 3D shape is the sum of the area of all the faces. The net of a prism can help find the surface area of a prism but can be time consuming.
2. Use this key word in a maths sentence and explain it clearly. 'Prism'
polyhedron with base and identical parallel opposite side with corresponding edges joined by parallelograms. Use this word when showing your method, then check your final answer is reasonable.
3. Spot and fix this common maths mistake.
Mistake: Pupils may try to avoid sketching of nets or faces and in turn miss information. Correction: Reassure pupils that a sketch does not need to be perfect and just needs to convey the key information.
More Lessons In This Unit
- Area of a circle Study Guide
- Area of composite shapes Study Guide
- Checking understanding of area Study Guide
- Checking understanding of perimeter Study Guide
- Circumference of a circle Study Guide
- Finding a length in composite shapes Study Guide
- Multiplicative relationships in circles Study Guide
- Perimeter of composite shapes Study Guide
- Problem solving with perimeter, area and volume Study Guide
- Properties of prisms Study Guide
- Surface area of cuboids Study Guide
- Surface area of cylinders Study Guide
- Using the formula for the area of a circle Study Guide
- Volume of cylinders Study Guide
- Volume of prisms Study Guide
Browse all guides in the Year 8 Maths guide library.