Standard area & circle formulae
Rectangle ; triangle ; trapezium ; circle area ; circumference .
Compound shapes: split into parts
Break the shape into rectangles/triangles/trapezia, work out each, then add (or subtract a hole).
Drawn from real examiner reports.
Treating a compound shape as a single shape
Applying one formula to the whole figure instead of splitting it into a rectangle plus a trapezium (etc.).
On June 2024 Paper 2H (Q7) some students treated the whole shape as a trapezium rather than a rectangle and a trapezium.
Forgetting to add a part back in
Finding each piece correctly but omitting one when combining (e.g. not adding a height back on).
Several students found 6.5 but failed to add it to 13 to reach the final answer 19.5 on June 2024 Paper 2H (Q7).
Mixing up area and circumference
Using when area is needed (or vice versa).
Using diameter as radius
Putting the diameter into or instead of the radius . A diameter of gives , so area .
(general exam technique)
Dropping the ½ in a triangle/trapezium
Writing a triangle area as or a trapezium as , forgetting the . Triangle ; trapezium .
(general exam technique)
For a segment: sector minus triangle
Segment area sector area triangle area .
Split then add
For a compound shape, sketch the split into standard pieces, find each area, then add (or subtract a hole). Label each piece so none is dropped.
Area or perimeter — decide first
Read whether the question wants the space inside (, area) or the distance around (, circumference) — they are easy to swap.
| Shape | Area |
|---|---|
| Rectangle | |
| Triangle | |
| Parallelogram | |
| Trapezium | |
| Circle |
Circle circumference . Don't confuse area () with circumference ().
Area of a circle?
Find the area of a circle of radius cm, correct to 1 d.p. (use ).