Counting Squares: The Fairy Garden Plots

In the Fairy Garden, the fairies plant their flowers in little square patches of soil, one flower in each square. The area of a plot is how many of those squares cover it.

Remember: Area is the number of squares that cover a shape, with no gaps and no overlaps. Count the squares inside, and give the answer in squares: a plot of 2 rows of 3 squares has an area of 6 squares. When each square is 1 m on every side, that is 6 square m.

Magic trick: Area is what’s inside. Count the squares, not the lines or the dots at the corners. Touch each square once as you count it.