3D Nets

3D Nets are used to show the correlation between 2D plane shapes and three dimensional shapes.

Below you will find a list of the commonly studied three dimensional shapes in elementary math.

Printable 3DNets

Click on the image of the shape you wish to download, and a printable Pdf will open.

Hexagonal Based Pyramid

This sheet contains a printable 3D Net of an Hexagonal Based Pyramid.

It also contains the image to the left, of the completed shape, and an image of a partially open Hexagonal Pyramid, which if continued would create an all together different Net.

Square Based Pyramid

Print this 3D Net of the square based pyramid.

This also contains an image of they pyramid as it looks when completed, and image of a partially open/closed pyramid.

Tetrahedron

This tetrahedron is one of the few platonic solids an elementary student is exposed to.  It is a fun and un complicated net of a 3D shape to put together.

As with the other nets here, the printable also contains an image of the completed shape, as well as a partially open shape.

Cuboid

The cuboid net is very familiar to kids.  It's a fun project to make some boxes to house little home made gifts, such as cookies/candies.

Cylinder

Try making a small desk organizer for pencils and pens, using different sized cylinder tubes.  Remember, if your kids actually make something 'concrete' rather than just 'doing a work sheet' they will have greater fact recall.

You can choose to print one or all of these beautiful nets of 3d shapes.

Consider printing them on heavy stock paper or light card. By doing so, it will be easier for kids to actually construct the shapes, and it will also increase their longevity.

Consider this.

When making these shapes, a fun little project is to make a mobile.  This will also make storing the finished shapes easier.

If you chose to do this, using the nets of 3D Shapes, a great idea is to attach a bead at the end of your mobile string.  Before the last 'face' of the 3D Shape is glued into place, put the end of the string with the bead inside the shape, then glue final face.

The bead will not pull through, and the end result looks very neat and tidy.

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