Calculating Surface Area: Cubes, Rectangular and Triangular Prisms

Sheena Doria

This comprehensive math tutorial guides students through the process of calculating the surface area for three specific 3D shapes: cubes, rectangular prisms, and triangular prisms. The video utilizes a clear, step-by-step approach that relies heavily on the concept of "nets"—unfolding a 3D object into its 2D faces—to help students visualize exactly what surface area represents. By decomposing complex 3D shapes into familiar 2D polygons (squares, rectangles, and triangles), the video makes the derivation of surface area formulas accessible and logical.