Perimeter and Area for Kids: Around the Outside, Space Inside (Grade 3 and Grade 4 Math)

Hi, I'm Luna from DoodleBeez. Today we are measuring rectangles in two ways. Perimeter is the distance all the way around a shape. Area is how much space covers the inside.

Here is a rectangle. It is six centimeters long and four centimeters wide. To find the perimeter, we walk all the way around the outside and add up the length of every side.

Six plus four plus six plus four. Six plus six is twelve, four plus four is eight, and twelve plus eight is twenty. The perimeter is twenty centimeters. You can also do two sixes plus two fours.

Area is the space inside. Let's fill the same rectangle with squares, each one centimeter by one centimeter. There are four rows, and there are six squares in each row.

Four rows of six is four times six, which is twenty four. So the area is twenty four square centimeters. For any rectangle, the area is the length times the width.

Remember the difference. Perimeter is a length around the outside, so we measure it in centimeters. Area covers the inside, so we measure it in square centimeters. Same rectangle, two different answers: twenty and twenty four.

Now it's your turn. A rectangle is five meters long and three meters wide. Find the perimeter and the area. Pause and try. Five plus three plus five plus three is sixteen meters. Five times three is fifteen square meters.

Great job! Remember, perimeter means adding all the sides around the outside. Area means length times width for the space inside. Practice perimeter and area in the Math Lab at doodlebeez.com. See you next time!