What you will learn
- Name cubes, cuboids, cylinders, cones, spheres, square-based pyramids and triangular prisms.
- Count the faces, edges and vertices of a solid, and tell flat faces from curved surfaces.
- Tell regular solids from irregular ones, and use what you know to build frames and solve problems.
A steel pan is made from an oil drum, and an oil drum is shaped like a cylinder. Solids are everywhere: the shoebox under your bed, the orange in your lunch kit and the cone that holds your ice cream. In this lesson you will learn their names and count their parts.
Naming solids
A solid is a shape that takes up space. You can hold it and turn it around. These are the seven solids you need to know. Dashed lines show edges hidden at the back.
cube
a die, a Rubik’s cube, a square box of tissues
cuboid
a shoebox, a brick, a juice box, a Crix box
cylinder
a sardine tin, a Milo tin, a roll of paper towel
cone
an ice cream cone, a party hat, a traffic cone
sphere
a football, an orange, a marble, a cricket ball
square-based pyramid
the roof of a gazebo, a pyramid tea bag
triangular prism
a tent, a Toblerone box, a roof shape
Faces, edges and vertices
A face is a flat surface. A curved surface is a surface that is not flat, like the side of a tin. An edge is where two surfaces meet. A vertex is a corner where edges meet. The plural of vertex is vertices.
| Solid | Flat faces | Curved surfaces | Edges | Vertices |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| cube | 6 | 0 | 12 | 8 |
| cuboid | 6 | 0 | 12 | 8 |
| cylinder | 2 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| cone | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| sphere | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| square-based pyramid | 5 | 0 | 8 | 5 |
| triangular prism | 5 | 0 | 9 | 6 |
Worked example 1
How many faces, edges and vertices does a cube have?
Show me how
Faces: top, bottom, front, back, left and right. That is 6 faces.
Edges: 4 on the top, 4 on the bottom and 4 going up the sides. That is 12 edges.
Vertices: 4 on the top and 4 on the bottom. That is 8 vertices.
Watch out! A common mistake
Do not count only what you can see in a drawing. A drawing of a cube shows 3 faces, but a cube has 6. Look for the dashed hidden edges, or pick up a real box and turn it around.
Faces that are shapes
Each flat face is a plane shape. A cube has 6 square faces. A square-based pyramid has 1 square face and 4 triangle faces. A triangular prism has 2 triangle faces and 3 rectangle faces. A cylinder has 2 circle faces and a cone has 1.
Worked example 2
Shanice has a solid with 5 faces: 2 triangles and 3 rectangles. What is it?
Show me how
Look for a solid with 2 triangle faces.
A square-based pyramid has 4 triangles, so it is not that.
It is a triangular prism, like a tent.
Regular and irregular solids
A regular solid has all its faces the same shape and the same size, and the same number of faces meets at every vertex. A cube is a regular solid: every face is the same square. A cuboid like a shoebox is irregular, because its faces are rectangles of different sizes. Pyramids and prisms here are irregular too, because their faces are not all the same.
Worked example 3
A juice box and a die are both boxes. Which one is a regular solid?
Show me how
The die has 6 faces that are all the same square.
The juice box has long rectangle faces and short ones.
The die is a regular solid (a cube). The juice box is an irregular solid (a cuboid).
Frames and problems
You can build a frame of a solid using straws for the edges and balls of clay or plasticine for the vertices. A cube frame needs 12 straws and 8 balls of clay.
Worked example 4
Rohan wants to make the frame of a square-based pyramid. How many straws and how many balls of clay does he need?
Show me how
Straws are the edges: 4 around the base and 4 going up to the top. That is 8 straws.
Clay balls are the vertices: 4 at the base and 1 at the top. That is 5 balls.
He needs 8 straws and 5 balls of clay.
You can roll solids with a curved surface, like a cylinder or a sphere. You can stack solids with flat faces, like cubes and cuboids. A cylinder can roll and stack!
Try it
TRY ITSolid shape detective
Name solids, count their flat faces, edges and vertices, build frames and match everyday objects.
Let’s practise
Work out each one in your copybook. Open Hint if you are stuck, then open Show answer to check your working.
1. How many faces does a cube have?
Hint
Top, bottom and four sides.
Show answer
6 faces
2. How many edges does a cuboid have?
Hint
Count the top, the bottom and the sides going up.
Show answer
12 edges
3. Which solid has 1 vertex, 1 flat face and 1 curved surface?
Hint
Think of an ice cream.
Show answer
A cone
4. What solid is a sardine tin shaped like?
Hint
It has 2 circle faces and can roll.
Show answer
A cylinder
5. A sphere has no edges. True or false?
Hint
Is there anywhere two surfaces meet?
Show answer
True. A sphere has one curved surface and no edges or vertices.
6. How many vertices does a square-based pyramid have?
Hint
4 around the base, and one more.
Show answer
5 vertices
7. Name the shapes of the faces of a triangular prism.
Hint
Look at a tent, front and sides.
Show answer
2 triangles and 3 rectangles
8. Makeda is making a cube frame with straws and clay. How many straws and balls of clay does she need?
Hint
Straws are edges, clay balls are vertices.
Show answer
12 straws and 8 balls of clay
Quiz
Lesson quiz: 10 questions
Answer every question, then press Check my answers. Score 8 or more to earn the Solid Shape Detective badge.
Solids: worksheet
Name: ____________________ Date: ______________
Part A: Let’s practise
1. How many faces does a cube have?
2. How many edges does a cuboid have?
3. Which solid has 1 vertex, 1 flat face and 1 curved surface?
4. What solid is a sardine tin shaped like?
5. A sphere has no edges. True or false?
6. How many vertices does a square-based pyramid have?
7. Name the shapes of the faces of a triangular prism.
8. Makeda is making a cube frame with straws and clay. How many straws and balls of clay does she need?
Part B: Quiz
1. How many faces does a cube have?
2. Which solid has 1 vertex?
(a) cylinder
(b) sphere
(c) cone
(d) cube
3. How many edges does a cuboid have?
4. A Milo tin is shaped like a
(a) cylinder
(b) cone
(c) cuboid
(d) sphere
5. A sphere has no edges.
True or False? Circle one: True / False
6. How many vertices does a square-based pyramid have?
7. Which solid has 2 triangle faces and 3 rectangle faces?
(a) square-based pyramid
(b) cube
(c) cuboid
(d) triangular prism
8. How many straws do you need to make the frame of a cube?
9. A cuboid shaped like a shoebox is a regular solid.
True or False? Circle one: True / False
10. Which solid can roll and can also be stacked?
(a) sphere
(b) cylinder
(c) cone
(d) cube
Answers (for the adult)
Part A
1. 6 faces
2. 12 edges
3. A cone
4. A cylinder
5. True. A sphere has one curved surface and no edges or vertices.
6. 5 vertices
7. 2 triangles and 3 rectangles
8. 12 straws and 8 balls of clay
Part B
1. 6
2. (c) cone
3. 12
4. (a) cylinder
5. True
6. 5
7. (d) triangular prism
8. 12
9. False
10. (b) cylinder
Recap
- Solids take up space: cube, cuboid, cylinder, cone, sphere, square-based pyramid, triangular prism.
- A face is flat, a curved surface is not, an edge is where surfaces meet, a vertex is a corner.
- Cube and cuboid: 6 faces, 12 edges, 8 vertices.
- A regular solid has all faces the same shape and size, like a cube.
- In a frame, straws are edges and balls of clay are vertices.
Words to know
- solid
- A shape that takes up space.
Example: A shoebox is a solid. - face
- A flat surface of a solid.
Example: A cube has 6 faces. - edge
- A line where two surfaces meet.
Example: A cuboid has 12 edges. - vertex (vertices)
- A corner where edges meet.
Example: A cone has 1 vertex. - curved surface
- A surface that is not flat.
Example: The side of a tin is a curved surface. - regular solid
- A solid whose faces are all the same shape and size.
Example: A cube is a regular solid.
Try it at home
- Go on a solid hunt at home. Find one object for each of the seven solids, like a Milo tin, a box of Crix or an orange, and count the faces, edges and vertices.
- Mini project: build a cube frame and a square-based pyramid frame with straws or toothpicks and plasticine. Count the straws and balls you used.
Test tips
Tips for class tests
- Draw dashed lines for hidden edges so that you count them.
- Count in a system: top first, then bottom, then the sides.
- Remember: faces are flat. A sphere has a curved surface but no flat faces.
For parents and teachers
After this lesson, your child should be able to:
- identify and name common solids and describe them by their faces, edges and vertices;
- distinguish regular solids (all faces the same, such as a cube) from irregular ones;
- make frames and simple sketches of solids, and solve problems about them.
Different books count the faces of a cylinder and a cone in different ways. In this lesson we count only flat surfaces as faces and list curved surfaces separately, so a cylinder has 2 faces and 1 curved surface. If your child’s teacher uses another way, follow the teacher.
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Previous: Adding and Subtracting Fractions – Standard 3 Maths
Next: Polygons: Regular, Irregular and Turned Shapes – Standard 3 Maths
Course: Standard 3 Maths
Updates
2026/11/05
– First version of this lesson.
Attributions to media used in this post:
Pan player.jpg – Shanel – CC BY-SA 3.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)
2 ice cream cones 2025-05-02.jpg – Andy Li – CC0 1.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)
© 2026 Vedesh Kungebeharry. All rights reserved.
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