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Grade 5 · Maths · Lessons
Length times width times height
📦box📏length↔️width↕️height
Volume.
The big ideaVolume is length times width times height, or the base times the height. Add the parts.

How it works

Volume is length times width times height, or the base times the height.

Pack a box in layers: one layer is length times width, then multiply by how many layers.

Volume is measured in cubic units.

Base: 4 × 3 =12Layers: 212 × 2 = 2424 cubic feet
A 4 by 3 by 2 box.

Example 1: Layers

  1. A box is 4 feet long, 3 wide and 2 tall.
  2. One layer is 4 × 3 = 12 cubes, and there are 2 layers.
  3. 12 × 2 = 24 cubic feet.

Example 2: Another box

  1. A box is 3 meters long, 4 wide and 3 tall.
  2. One layer is 3 × 4 = 12, and there are 3 layers.
  3. 12 × 3 = 36 cubic meters.

Example 3: The formula

  1. Use length times width times height. What is the volume in cubic inches?
  2. Length times width times height.
  3. 4 × 4 = 16, then 16 × 6 = 96.
  4. So the answer is 96.

Words to know

volume
How much space a solid takes up.
cubic unit
One cube used to measure volume.

Watch out

Try it

  1. A box is 2 by 5 by 3. What is the volume?
  2. What is the formula for volume?
  3. What unit do you use?
  4. A base of 10 and a height of 4. Volume?
Answers: 1. 30 · 2. length × width × height · 3. cubic units · 4. 40
For grown-upsMeasure a cereal box and work out its volume.
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