Geometry – properties of shapes
Shapes and symmetry
Count the sides and corners of a shape, name the parts of a solid, find a line of symmetry, and cover a shape with smaller shapes.
Most flat shapes have sides and corners, but a circle has neither — it is one curved line all the way round. Most solid shapes have faces, edges and corners; a sphere is all one curved surface.
Where the words meet
A face is a flat surface, an edge is where two faces meet, and a corner is the point where the edges meet. And a line of symmetry is a fold line: fold the shape along it and the two halves match exactly.
Have a play
Here is a box drawn as a solid. Find a face, an edge and a corner on it.
Tap any part of the picture.
Worked example
How many corners does a square have?
Count where two sides meet: top left, top right, bottom right, bottom left.
On a straight-sided shape, a corner is a meeting of two sides — so counting the meetings counts the corners.
Try it together
Let us count the parts of a cube.
A cube is a box whose every face is a square.
1.A cube has a top, a bottom and four sides. What is 2 + 4?
Have a play
Take a tile from the tray and lay it on the hexagon. Cover the whole hexagon with one kind of tile, then clear it and try another kind.
Have a go
Have a go on your own: how many sides does a hexagon have?
Hint: Count each straight side once, all the way round.
Ready to practise?
Eight questions on what you have just read. Nothing is timed, and you can play as many times as you like.