Rotating a Square to Form a Cylinder

Topic

3D Geometry

Description

This animation demonstrates how rotating a square around one of its sides creates a cylinder. It's a special case of rotating a rectangle, where the height and diameter of the resulting cylinder are equal.

Using animated math clip art like this helps students understand the relationship between 2D and 3D shapes. Teachers can use this to discuss how the dimensions of the original shape relate to the dimensions of the resulting solid.

Here's a potential script for teachers: "Watch as this square rotates to form a cylinder. What's special about this cylinder compared to the one formed by a non-square rectangle? How does the square's side length relate to the cylinder's dimensions?"

For a complete collection of animated math clip art related to 3D Geometry click on this link: Animated 3D Geometry Collection.