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Area of Parallelogram

Look at this shape. What do you see? What are the names of the shapes? Would you be able to find the area of the shapes? In this activity, the aim to explore the properties of the shapes above and be able to find a formula for the area of it.

This page addresses the following item from the syllabus:

Area and Perimeter

Carry out calculations involving the area of a parallelogram.

Introduction

Teachers may wish to use the following manipulative to lead a discussion about its properties.

  • What is the name of the shape?
  • What properties does it have?
  • Why does it sometimes look like a rectangle/square?

Investigation

Print off a copy of Investigating Areas of Parallelograms and use the manipulative below to explore the areas of parallelograms.

Justification

You should now have discovered the formula for the area of a parallelogram. You can justify that this formula is true by cutting out the shape below and putting it back together.

This manipulative may also help you visualise the formula for the area of a parallelogram:

Practice Questions

Here are some questions that practice the skills learnt in this activity.

Tags: parallelogram, area, investigation

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