measurement · Year 4 · AC9M4M02
Area by counting squares
Area is how much surface a shape covers. On a grid of 1 cm squares, count the squares the shape covers, row by row, so none are missed. Count only the shaded squares, not the edges around the shape (that is the perimeter). Two half squares make one whole square, so count the halves and share them into pairs. A right-angled triangle is half of the rectangle drawn around it.
Sample questions
Each small square is 1 square centimetre. What is the area of the shaded shape, in square centimetres?
- Count the shaded squares row by row, so none are missed or counted twice.
- 2 + 2 + 2 = 6
- The area is 6 cm².
Answer: 6
Each small square is 1 square centimetre. What is the area of the shaded shape, in square centimetres?
- Count the shaded squares row by row, so none are missed or counted twice.
- 2 + 1 + 3 + 3 = 9
- The area is 9 cm².
Answer: 9
Each small square is 1 square centimetre. What is the area of the shaded shape, in square centimetres?
- Count the shaded squares row by row, so none are missed or counted twice.
- 2 + 2 + 2 + 1 = 7
- The area is 7 cm².
Answer: 7