What you’ll learn
Find actual areas from scale drawings.
Key idea
An area factor is the square of the length factor; square centimeters and square meters are different units here.
Both side lengths change; area scales by the square of the linear factor, not the linear factor itself.
Worked example
Enter the exact value or ordered values in the format requested below.
A drawing rectangle is 2cm by 3cm. Scale1cm represents 8m. Enter actual area as a number of square meters.
- The actual rectangle sides are 16m and 24m.
- Multiply both scaled sides: actual area=16×24=384m², equal to 6×8².
Answer: 384
Quick Check
Evaluate a worked attempt at find actual areas from scale drawings, identify the first invalid step, and provide the correction.
Drawn rectangle 2cm by 6cm at scale1cm to 6m. Step1: drawn area=12cm². Step2: actual area=12×6=72m². Locate the first invalid step and correct area.