Primary 3 maths · Geometry · About 10 minutes
Compare angles with a right angle
Find the vertex and compare the opening, keeping the baseline fixed.
Start the interactive lesson →Open practice activity
What you will learn
- Compare angles with a right angle
Models used: number sentences, stories, diagrams.
Before you start
Compare the opening with a square corner
This opening is smaller than a square corner.
This opening is smaller than a square corner.
An angle smaller than a right angle. This opening matches a square corner. It is a right angle.
A right angle. This opening is wider than a square corner. It is greater than a right angle.
An angle greater than a right angle.
What did the picture help us see?
This opening is wider than a square corner. It is greater than a right angle.
Worked example: A new example, together
Compare the marked angle with a right angle.
Find the vertex and compare the opening, keeping the baseline fixed.
The amount of turn determines the angle, independent of ray length.
Compare the opening, not the lengths of the rays. Imagine a square corner with a 90° opening.
Compare the opening, not the lengths of the rays. Compare the marked angle with a right angle.
greater than a right angle
Compare with the corner of a square.
Compare the opening, not the lengths of the rays. It is greater than a right angle.
Compare the opening, not the lengths of the rays. Check the result against the question we started with.
The opening is greater than a right angle.
We found greater than a right angle. The amount of turn determines the angle, independent of ray length.
Compare the opening, not the lengths of the rays.
Common mistakes to discuss
- A tilted corner is not a right angle. A right angle stays a right angle when the figure is turned. Compare it with the corner of a page in the same position.
Check your understanding
- Compare angles with a right angle
- recognise or measure a turn independently of ray length
- check the answer against the original quantities and units
Explain your reasoning to an adult, then try a fresh question in the interactive lesson. A result from one attempt is not proof of lasting mastery.
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