Perimeter and Area
The perimeter and the area are two different types of measurement of a polygon or geometric figure. Some students continually get them confused as well as believing that if one gets larger, then the other must get larger too. This is indeed a confusing concept for some students, which is why the concepts of perimeter and area need to be revisited on a yearly basis during the teaching of a geometry unit. One suggestion to avoid such confusion is teaching the concept using graph to show area grid which will support the foundation for a deeper understanding of perimeter and area measurement. Another recommendation is the use of square tiles to have a visual to make formulas of perimeter and area understandable. The use of Polyominos is another method in solidifying the understanding of the concepts.
These instructional methods incorporate the same concept of providing visuals for students to grasp the mathematical concept. For instance, using the graph paper. A simple shape to use in teaching perimeter and area is the rectangle. On the graph draw a row of three tiles, then right above that array draw one more row of three tiles to form a two-by-three array, which is a rectangle. The rectangle you drew has a width of 2 units and a length of 3 units. Perimeter means the total length of all the sides of the shape. Now that we know the measurement of each side of our shape we can calculate the perimeter by adding the measurement of all the sides, as follows: 2+2+3+3 = 10 units. Now what do you notice? I notice there are two 2s and two 3s, because there are two sides with a measure of 2 (width) and the other two sides have a measure of 3 (length), so this helps us understand the formula for the rectangle, that A = 2 × (w + l) or A = 2(w) + 2(l). So, there are various methods that can be implemented to teach perimeter but selecting the methods and resources that fits your students’ learning style is optimal.
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