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6th grade · Math · Unit 17 of 17

Nets & Surface Area

Unfold a box

What your child practices

Using nets made of rectangles and triangles to find the surface area of prisms and pyramids.

Maine Learning Results learning standard: 6.G.A.4 · representing three-dimensional figures with nets and using them to find surface area

How we explain it

Children can open this short lesson before they practice.

  1. A net is a solid unfolded flat.
  2. Find the area of every face in the net.
  3. Add them all: that is the surface area.

Example: A box is 2 cm by 3 cm by 4 cm. What is its surface area? Two 2 × 3 faces: 12. Two 2 × 4 faces: 16. Two 3 × 4 faces: 24. 12 + 16 + 24 = 52. Answer: 52 cm²

Nets & Surface Area in Maine

In the Maine Learning Results, this is unit 17 of 17 in 6th grade Math, after Unit Rates.

Gradelings describes a child's practice on this unit as Beginning, Approaching, Meeting or Exceeding (Four practice steps). That reflects practice, not a report-card mark: the teacher decides the mark.

Source: Maine Department of Education

Sample questions

A taste of this unit. In the app, questions change every time and get easier or harder to match your child.

  1. Question 1

    A cube has edges 3 in long. What is its surface area?

    • 36 in²
    • 18 in²
    • 27 in²
    • 57 in²
    • 54 in²

  2. Question 2

    A box is 6 cm by 2 cm by 4 cm. Use its net to find its surface area.

    • 44 cm²
    • 85 cm²
    • 48 cm²
    • 56 cm²
    • 88 cm²

  3. Question 3

    A square pyramid has a base 6 ft on each side. Each triangle face has a height of 5 ft. What is its surface area?

    • 132 ft²
    • 156 ft²
    • 60 ft²
    • 96 ft²
    • 93 ft²

  4. Question 4

    Which shapes make up a net of a triangular pyramid?

    • 4 triangles
    • 2 triangles and 3 rectangles
    • 6 triangles
    • 3 triangles and 1 square

  5. Question 5

    Which shapes make up a net of a cube?

    • 2 circles and 1 rectangle
    • 4 squares
    • 5 squares and 1 triangle
    • 6 squares

  6. Question 6

    A cube has edges 8 in long. What is its surface area?

    • 256 in²
    • 384 in²
    • 387 in²
    • 512 in²
    • 48 in²

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