3D Shapes Explorer

3D Shapes Explorer is an interactive classroom tool for teaching solid shapes and their properties. Students and teachers turn a cube, cuboid, prism, pyramid, cylinder, cone, sphere or one of the five regular solids, then tap the shape to count its faces, edges and vertices together, with numbered labels and a see-through mode for the hidden ones. Each shape shows the 2D shapes that make up its faces, Euler's rule for corners, edges and faces, and a pattern finder for prisms and pyramids with 3 to 12 sides on the base. Further tabs unfold every solid into its nets, work out volume and surface area with the formula and the working shown, and slice the shape to reveal its cross-section.

• Count the faces, edges and vertices of a cube by tapping them, then check the counts with Euler's rule.
• Switch on See-through to find the edges and vertices hidden at the back of a shape.
• Change the number of sides on a prism or pyramid and spot the pattern in its faces, edges and vertices.
• Unfold a cube and find all 11 of its different nets, then unfold a cylinder and a cone.
• Fill a cuboid with 1 cm cubes, layer by layer, to see why volume is length times width times height.
• Slice a cube from corner to corner and discover that the cross-section is a regular hexagon.
• Play Mystery shape: reveal clues about a hidden solid, then guess which one it is.

1. 1Name common 3D shapes and describe their properties using faces, edges and vertices.
2. 2Identify the 2D shapes that make up the faces of a prism, pyramid or regular solid.
3. 3Recognise and draw nets of cubes, cuboids, prisms and pyramids.
4. 4Calculate the volume and surface area of cuboids, prisms, pyramids, cylinders, cones and spheres.
5. 5Describe the cross-section made by slicing a solid, and use Euler's formula to check a count.

教师常问的问题