Unit 2- Prisms and Solids

During this unit, students study volume—the amount of space a 3-D object occupies. They use paper boxes and cubes to develop a strategy for finding the volume of any rectangular prism. Students also find the volume of solids composed of rectangular prisms. They also learn to apply the formulas for volume (V = l × w × h and V = b × h) to find volume. 

Activities to Try at Home 

How Many Packages in a Box? Many household items are packaged and sold in boxes. You and your child can take a large cardboard box and predict how many bars of soap (toothpaste, pudding, cereal boxes) would fit in that box. You might try a variety of boxes at home or explore the way things are packaged when you visit grocery stores or other stores. 

Volume of a Room Another activity for exploring volume is to compare the amount of space in different rooms. At school, students will find the volume of their classroom in cubic meters. At home, your child can find the volume of various rooms. Which room do you think has the largest volume? Which room has the smallest volume? Why? Discuss how to compare rooms of unusual shapes (a slanted ceiling or an L-shape).