Surface area using nets
Represent right rectangular prisms, triangular prisms and pyramids with rectangular or triangular bases using nets made of rectangles and triangles; use the solid's dimensions to label every face on the net; find the surface area as the sum of the face areas, in square units; distinguish surface area (the area covering the outside) from volume (the space inside); and apply this to real-world problems such as wrapping, painting or making boxes, including deciding which faces to include (e.g. an open-topped box)
Lesson
Set out your lesson
“Surface area using nets means practising the idea at the table with counters or paper models and one clear check. We will demo once, then your child tries.”
Bring to the table
- Unit cubes or squared paper nets
- Pencil for recording
Extra for the adult
Worked example. A 2 by 3 by 4 cuboid has volume 24 unit cubes.
Optional challenge. For Surface area using nets, add one harder example after success.
What to notice. Keep one parent note: examples tried; results; support used. This session samples Surface area using nets, not mastery.
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1 approach
Surface area using nets means practising the idea at the table with counters or paper models and one clear check. We will demo once, then your child tries.
Materials: Unit cubes or squared paper nets; Pencil for recording. 1. Say the goal of Surface area using nets in plain words once. 2. Adult builds a 2×3×4 cuboid and counts 24 unit cubes. 3. Child builds or sketches three cuboids/nets and records length×width×height. 4. Fresh check: one fresh L×W×H volume. Record and stop. Done: three correct volume or net records. Proof: parent note of examples and results. Stop: End after the fresh check; keep optional challenge for another day.
Family records and proof options
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Learning resources
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BBC Bitesize · Practice link — not the full lesson
KS3 Maths
Before you open · source notes
KS3 Maths supports Surface area using nets. An adult previews and guides; this is a learning page, not a scored quiz.
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Source, access and review notes
Public BBC Bitesize page. An anonymous GET on 2026-11-12 returned HTTP 200 with no login or payment prompt for this URL. Opening the link does not save practice or assess mastery. An adult should preview and guide the learner.
BBC Bitesize. “KS3 Maths.” External page; Gakuva does not copy, host, embed, or redistribute materials.
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Check understanding
- Draw the net of a 5 cm × 4 cm × 3 cm cuboid, label each rectangle's dimensions, and find the surface area as 2 × (20 + 15 + 12) = 94 cm²
- Use the net of a square-based pyramid with 6 cm base edges and triangular faces of height 5 cm to find its surface area (36 + 4 × 15 = 96 cm²)
- Find the card needed for an open-topped box 30 cm × 20 cm × 10 cm, leaving out the top (600 + 2 × 300 + 2 × 200 = 1,600 cm²), and explain why the answer is in cm² rather than cm³
“If your child wants to wrap a shoebox 30 cm long, 20 cm wide and 10 cm tall, could they sketch the box unfolded flat, work out the area of each rectangle and add them up to find how much paper is needed?”
Curriculum record
- Type
- Procedural
- Subject
- Mathematics
- Domain
- Measurement
- Age range
- Ages 11–13
Standards