Rotating Plane Figures to Form Solids

Rotating Plane Figures to Form Solids

Explore which three-dimensional solids are generated when basic plane figures are rotated around an axis.


Share it with your students:

Student Link

Putting It All Together

Answer these open ended questions on your own or with others to form deeper math connections.

Open-ended question 1

Choose the Rectangle option in the interactive. Which side of the rectangle determines the height of the cylinder, and which side determines the radius of the base?

Text and math input

Open-ended question 2

In the right triangle, which leg acts as the axis of rotation/height, and which leg becomes the base radius? What feature of the cone does the hypotenuse form?

Text and math input

Open-ended question 3

The trapezoid has two parallel sides perpendicular to the axis. How do these two lengths relate to the top and bottom circular faces of the truncated cone?

Text and math input