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Area and perimeter

Area and perimeter for GCSE Combined Science AQA Foundation: what it means, how to set the working out, and the questions it is asked in.
  • GCSE
  • AQA
  • Combined Science
  • Foundation
  • Spec N20 · N17
  • 7 min read
  • 6 revision boxes

Introduction

2 boxes
1 min read

What is area and perimeter?

Listen to this box

Transcript

A short spoken summary of area and perimeter and where it is used.

A spoken walk-through of area and perimeter before you read the notes.
Sketch the shape even when the question does not ask for one — it makes the next step obvious.
3 rows

The area and perimeter reference table

Practise the routine version until it is automatic, then move to the multi-step questions.
The layout below is the one the mark scheme expects.

Diagram showing area and perimeter laid out step by step

The same idea drawn out, so the method is visible.
Term
Meaning
Example
Common slip
Row 1 column 1
Row 1 column 2
≈160\approx 160
Row 1 column 4
Row 2 column 1
Row 2 column 2
≈160\approx 160
Row 2 column 4

Learning

2 boxes
5 steps

How to work with area and perimeter

The examiner marks the working, so a correct answer with no method still drops marks.
The layout below is the one the mark scheme expects.

Diagram showing area and perimeter laid out step by step

The same idea drawn out, so the method is visible.
  1. Read the question and write down what is being asked for.
  2. Set out the working for area and perimeter in the order the method gives.
  3. Substitute the values and simplify.
  4. Check the answer against an estimate before writing it down.
Start from the definition and substitute the numbers the question gives you.
Simplify one line at a time: a2+b2=c2a^2 + b^2 = c^2.
Answer: 34×25\frac{3}{4} \times \frac{2}{5}
3 rules

Key facts: Area and perimeter

This idea appears again in the higher-mark questions, so it is worth over-learning.
Worth knowing: x2+5x+6=0x^2 + 5x + 6 = 0.

  • Rule 1

    How area and perimeter behaves in the 1st of the cases the specification names.
    49=7\sqrt{49} = 7

  • Rule 2

    How area and perimeter behaves in the 2nd of the cases the specification names.
    49=7\sqrt{49} = 7

  • Rule 3

    How area and perimeter behaves in the 3rd of the cases the specification names.
    49=7\sqrt{49} = 7

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Examples

2 boxes
3 marks · worked

Worked example: area and perimeter

Check the answer against an estimate before you move on, so a place-value slip is caught here.
4 marks · worked

Practice question 6: 49=7\sqrt{49} = 7

The specification wording is precise here, and the mark scheme follows that wording exactly.
The layout below is the one the mark scheme expects.

Diagram showing area and perimeter laid out step by step

The same idea drawn out, so the method is visible.

Practice bank

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Topics
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Common questions

How many marks is area and perimeter usually worth?
Between one and four, depending on how many steps the question asks for.
Is this on the GCSE Combined Science AQA Foundation paper?
Yes — it sits in the Causes and consequences strand.