1. 3-Dimensional Figures
Surface Area

2. Surface Area Investigation
Using your 12 blocks, build a rectangular prism that is only 2 blocks on the bottom.

3. Surface Area Investigation
Using your 12 blocks, build a rectangular prism that is only 2 blocks on the bottom. What is the volume? What is the surface area?

4. Surface Area Investigation
Using your 12 blocks, build a rectangular prism that is 3 blocks on the bottom.

5. Surface Area Investigation
Using your 12 blocks, build a rectangular prism that is 3 blocks on the bottom. What is the volume? What is the surface area?

6. Surface Area Investigation
Using your 12 blocks, build a rectangular prism that is only 1 block on the bottom.

7. Surface Area Investigation
Using your 12 blocks, build a rectangular prism that is only 1 block on the bottom. What is the volume? What is the surface area?

8. would like to pick up this building…
Launch - Problem
For Valentine’s Day
, Godzilla…
would like to pick up this building…
wrap it…
and give it to Mrs. Godzilla.
wait.. 1

9. Launch - Problem
Wrapping paper is expensive! I want to use as little as possible. How could I calculate how much wrapping paper I would need to exactly cover the building without any paper overlapping?
wait.. 1

10. Launch - Problem
Wrapping paper is expensive! I want to use as little as possible. How could I calculate how much wrapping paper I would need to exactly cover the building without any paper overlapping?
How might knowing the area of each side (or face) help you to find the amount of wrapping paper needed to cover the building?
wait.. 1

11. Vocabulary
The exact amount of paper needed to cover a rectangular prism (or box) is called the Surface Area.
A net is used to help find the surface area. It shows the size and number of faces a 3-dimensional figure has. 1

12. A rectangular prism always has
Vocabulary
A rectangular prism always has
____ faces, or sides. 6
Side 2
Bottom
Back
Top
Side 1
Front
Height (H)
Width (W)
Length (L)
wait.. 1

13. Vocabulary
To help us see all six faces of a rectangular prism, you can unfold the rectangular prism and make a drawing called a net.
Top
Top
Front
Front
Side
Side
Side
Bottom
You can easily see all three pairs of faces in a net.
Back
wait.. 1

14. Vocabulary
Remember the rectangular prism that you built that had 3 blocks on the bottom? Let’s use a net to verify the surface area is 38 units2.
Top
Top
Front
Front
4 u
Side
Side
Side
1 u
3 units
Bottom
Front + back = 24
Side + side = 8
Top + bottom = 6
= 38 units2
Back
wait.. 1

15. Practice Problem 1 4 in 2 in 7 in
Find the surface area of this rectangular prism. Draw and label its net.
Front
Back
Side 1
Side 2
Top
Bottom
7 in
4 in
2 in

16. Practice Problem 2 5 in 6 in 4 in
Find the surface area of this rectangular prism. Draw and label its net.
Front
Back
Side 1
Side 2
Top
Bottom
4 in
5 in
6 in