Curriculum  /  Math  /  3rd Grade  /  Unit 4: Area  /  Lesson 2

Area

Lesson 2

Math

Unit 4

3rd Grade

Lesson 2 of 14

Objective

Understand that area is measured using square units. Find the area of a figure using square tiles.

Common Core Standards

Core Standards

  • 3.MD.C.5 — Recognize area as an attribute of plane figures and understand concepts of area measurement.
  • 3.MD.C.6 — Measure areas by counting unit squares (square cm, square m, square in, square ft, and improvised units).

Foundational Standards

  • 1.G.A.2
  • 2.G.A.2

Criteria for Success

  1. Understand that area is measured in square units.
  2. Compare the areas of various rectangles that don’t necessarily have a common dimension or property.
  3. Find the area of various figures by covering a space with concrete unit squares without gaps or overlaps (MP.5, MP.6). 
  4. Find the approximate area of various figures using square tiles, including figures with partial units (optional) (MP. 1, MP.5). 
  5. Build figures with various area measurements using square tiles (MP.5).
  6. Use correct units when recording the area of a two-dimensional figure, i.e., square units (MP.6).

Tips for Teachers

  • Lesson 2 begins a progression throughout all of Topic A in which students “determine the number of squares in each row with increasingly sophisticated strategies, such as skip-counting the number in each row and eventually multiplying the number in each row by the number of rows (MP.8)” (GM Progression, p. 17).
  • #6 on the Problem Set and Extra Practice Problems involves finding the area of non-rectangular figures similar to Anchor Task 4. You may decide to cut it if there isn't time for Anchor Task 4.

Lesson Materials

Fishtank Plus

Unlock features to optimize your prep time, plan engaging lessons, and monitor student progress.

Anchor Tasks

25-30 minutes

Problem 1

Which of the rectangles on Template: Compare Rectangles has the greatest area? Show or explain your thinking.

Guiding Questions

Create a free account or sign in to access the Guiding Questions for this Anchor Problem.

Student Response

Upgrade to Fishtank Plus to view Sample Response.

References

Institute for Mathematics and Education Progressions for the Common Core State Standards in Mathematics (K-5, Geometric Measurement) — page 17

Progressions for the Common Core State Standards in Mathematics (K-5, Geometric Measurement), by the Common Core Standards Writing Team is made available by Institute for Mathematics and Education, University of Arizona. © 2007 The Arizona Board of Regents. All contents copyrighted. All rights reserved. Accessed June 14, 2018, 1:16 p.m.. For updates and more information about the Progressions, see http://ime.math.arizona.edu/progressions.

Problem 2

Area is measured in square units. We can cover a shape with unit squares, then count the number of squares that make up a shape to find its area. For example, if a shape is covered by 12 unit squares, it has an area of 12 square units.

a.   Use square tiles to find the area, in square units, of the rectangles in Anchor Task #1.

b.   Build a rectangle with an area of 15 square units. 

Guiding Questions

Create a free account or sign in to access the Guiding Questions for this Anchor Problem.

Student Response

Upgrade to Fishtank Plus to view Sample Response.

Problem 3

a.   Use square tiles to find the area of Figures i and ii on Template: Tile to Find Area.

b.   Naiche says that figure (ii) has an area of 18 square units because he covered it with 18 square tiles, as shown below.

Do you agree with Naiche? Explain your reasoning.

Guiding Questions

Create a free account or sign in to access the Guiding Questions for this Anchor Problem.

Student Response

Upgrade to Fishtank Plus to view Sample Response.

References

Illustrative Mathematics IM Grade 3 Unit 2 Lesson 2 Activity 2

Adapted from IM Grade 3 Unit 2 Lesson 2 Activity 2, accessed on Sept. 22, 2022, 3:47 p.m., is licensed by Illustrative Mathematics under either the CC BY 4.0 or CC BY-NC-SA 4.0. For further information, contact Illustrative Mathematics.

Illustrative Mathematics IM Grade 3 Unit 2 Lesson 3 Cool-Down

Adapted from IM Grade 3 Unit 2 Lesson 3 Cool-Down, accessed on Sept. 22, 2022, 3:49 p.m., is licensed by Illustrative Mathematics under either the CC BY 4.0 or CC BY-NC-SA 4.0. For further information, contact Illustrative Mathematics.

Problem 4

Use square tiles to find the approximate area of the figure on Template: Tile to Approximate Area.

Guiding Questions

Create a free account or sign in to access the Guiding Questions for this Anchor Problem.

Student Response

Upgrade to Fishtank Plus to view Sample Response.

Problem Set

15-20 minutes

Discussion of Problem Set

  • Which units did we use to measure area?
  • How could you use rectangle A to find the area of rectangle B in #1?
  • How many different rectangles were you able to build with an area of 12 square units?
  • How did you determine the area of the figures in #6?

Target Task

5-10 minutes

Problem 1

Using your square tiles, find the area of the following rectangle.

Student Response

Upgrade to Fishtank Plus to view Sample Response.

Problem 2

Construct a rectangle whose area is 16 square units. Then show your teacher.

Student Response

Upgrade to Fishtank Plus to view Sample Response.

Additional Practice

The Extra Practice Problems can be used as additional practice for homework, during an intervention block, etc. Daily Word Problems and Fluency Activities are aligned to the content of the unit but not necessarily to the lesson objective, therefore feel free to use them anytime during your school day.

Word Problems and Fluency Activities

Word Problems and Fluency Activities

Help students strengthen their application and fluency skills with daily word problem practice and content-aligned fluency activities.

Next

Find the area of a rectangle by counting unit squares on grids.

Lesson 3
icon/arrow/right/large

Lesson Map

A7CB09C2-D12F-4F55-80DB-37298FF0A765

Topic A: Understanding Concepts of Area

Topic B: The Distributive Property and Composite Area

Request a Demo

See all of the features of Fishtank in action and begin the conversation about adoption.

Learn more about Fishtank Learning School Adoption.

Contact Information

School Information

What courses are you interested in?

ELA

Math

Are you interested in onboarding professional learning for your teachers and instructional leaders?

Yes

No

Any other information you would like to provide about your school?

We Handle Materials So You Can Focus on Students

We Handle Materials So You Can Focus on Students

We've got you covered with rigorous, relevant, and adaptable math lesson plans for free