Similar FiguresSame shape, different size — and the ratio that connects them.7th GradeSimilar figures have equal corresponding anglesand proportional corresponding sides. The scalefactor is the ratio between them.scale factor = new ÷ originalSides 3,4,5 → 6,8,10scale factor 2Every side doubled.Find a missing sideset up a proportion3/6 = 4/x → x = 8.Perimeter× scale factorLengths scale directly.Area× scale factor²Double the sides, quadruple the area.THE COMMON MISTAKEdouble the sides, double the areadouble the sides, quadruple the areaArea involves two dimensions, so the scale factor is applied twice.Congruent means identical. Similar means the same shape at a differentsize.Similar Figureslearnposters.com
Similar Figures — printable math wall chart from LearnPosters. Free vector PDF, US Letter and A4.

What’s on the Similar Figures poster

The rule, 4 worked examples, and the mistake everyone makes.

Congruent means identical. Similar means the same shape at a different size.

Questions about the Similar Figures poster

What’s on the Similar Figures poster?
The rule, 4 worked examples, and the mistake everyone makes. Similar figures have equal corresponding angles and proportional corresponding sides.…; scale factor = new ÷ original; Sides 3,4,5 → 6,8,10 = scale factor 2; Find a missing side = set up a proportion; Perimeter = × scale factor; Area = × scale factor²; Common mistake: double the sides, double the area → double the sides, quadruple the area. Congruent means identical. Similar means the same shape at a different size.
Who is the Similar Figures poster for?
Similar Figures is filed under 7th Grade (ages 12–13), so it matches what that year asks a child to remember. It is equally useful to an older student revisiting math, and to the parent or teacher answering the question at the kitchen table.
When should you use the Similar Figures poster?
Match the corresponding sides carefully. Mismatching them is the whole difficulty. A wall chart earns its place by being glanceable from where the work is happening, so Similar Figures belongs on the wall where that math work actually happens, within glancing distance, rather than filed away.
What other posters go with Similar Figures?
Scale Drawings, Surface Area and Volume of Prisms and Cylinders sit alongside Similar Figures in the 7th Grade set. Printed together they make a wall rather than a single sheet, which is how a reference set actually gets used.Scale DrawingsSurface AreaVolume of Prisms and Cylinders
Is the Similar Figures poster free to download and print?
Yes. Similar Figures downloads as a free PDF with no account, no email and no watermark, like everything else in the 7th Grade set. Print as many copies as you like for a home, a classroom, a library or a tutoring group; reselling the file is the only thing the licence rules out.Read the licence
What size does the Similar Figures poster print at?
Similar Figures is a vector PDF laid out for US Letter, and prints on A4 with Fit to page — the same file, no separate download. Because every mark on it is drawn rather than photographed, it stays sharp enlarged to A3, A2 or A1 at a copy shop. Colour carries emphasis only, so a greyscale print of Similar Figures loses nothing.Printing guide

Related posters

Charts that sit alongside Similar Figures on the same wall.

Browse every 7th Grade poster, or start from the full catalogue.