Concept 3 of 6
Solid Shapes
Today's big idea
Solid shapes are 3D things you can hold.
Cube, sphere, cylinder and cone.
How it works
👀 What's going on?
A ball, a box, a can. These are solid shapes you can hold.
💡 Here's the trick
Solid shapes are 3D. A cube has square faces, a cuboid has rectangle faces, a sphere is a ball, a cylinder is like a can, and a cone has a point.
A dice is a cube, a tin is a cylinder, and a ball is a sphere.
✍️ Try it
An ice-cream shape has a flat circle and a point on top. What is it? → cone.
⚠️ Watch out
Flat shapes are 2D, but solid shapes are 3D and you can hold them.
Watch me solve one
Quanta solves it
“Watch how I think through one of these — then you try.”
THE PROBLEM
“A shape has a flat circle at the bottom and a point on top. What is it?”
- 1
Picture it
Flat round base, rising to a single point.
- 2
Match a solid
That is an ice-cream cone shape.
- 3
Name it
It is a cone.
- 4
Answer ✓
cone
Now you try one — same steps, different story 👇
See it in action
⚡ Time to play!
Which solid shape is 🎲 a dice?
Quick check
✅ VERIFICATION
Which solid is shaped like a ball?
⚡ Finish the activity above first to answer.
Keep going!
Up next: Faces, Edges & Corners
A cube has 6 square faces.