Figure 1. Many common objects, like juice boxes, are in the shape of rectangular prisms. You can measure the length, height, and width of the box, and then, use that information to calculate how much the box can hold (volume) and how much packaging material (surface area) was required to make the box.
If you measure the height, length, and width of a rectangular prism, you can use that information in a formula to calculate the volume and surface area of the container. The volume is the amount of space an object fills in three-dimensional space. It also tells you approximately how much a container, like a juice box, can hold. The surface area is the total amount of area on the outer surface of the object. It also tells you approximately how much material was used to create the shape.
In this experiment, you will use geometry to produce a mathematical model of a juice box. You will measure rectangular prisms (juice boxes), and use formulas to discover approximately how much juice each box can hold (volume) and how much packaging (surface area) was used. Which brand do you think holds the most juice? Which uses the least amount of packaging?