Area of a Rectangle & Units of Area
Learn how to measure the space inside flat shapes!
What is Area?
Area is the measure of the region inside a flat figure. It tells us how much surface a figure covers.
Key Facts:
- Area is measured in square units
- Area is always a positive number
- Area tells us how many unit squares fit inside a shape
Think of area like covering a floor with tiles — the area tells you how many tiles you need!
What is a Square Unit?
A square unit is a square with side length of 1 unit. It's the basic unit for measuring area.
Examples of square units:
- Square centimeter (cm²)
- Square meter (m²)
- Square kilometer (km²)
Units of Area
| Unit | Symbol | Used For | Example |
|---|---|---|---|
| Square millimeter | mm² | Very small areas | Ant, grain of rice |
| Square centimeter | cm² | Small objects | Postage stamp (~5 cm²) |
| Square decimeter | dm² | Medium objects | Book cover, small tray |
| Square meter | m² | Rooms, apartments | Classroom floor (~50 m²) |
| Are | a | Land plots | Small garden (1 a = 100 m²) |
| Hectare | ha | Large land areas | Football field (~0.7 ha) |
| Square kilometer | km² | Cities, countries | City parks, forests |