Area of a Road Around a Square Garden: S=at Proof

Published on May 26, 2026

Geometry

Learn how to prove that the area of a road surrounding a square garden is equal to the product of the road's width and the length of its centerline. This problem involves algebraic manipulation and geometric area calculations.

Question

Answer

Based on the image provided, here is the step-by-step solution to the math problem.

Problem Statement (Translated)

A road of width is built around a square garden with a side length of , as shown in the figure. Let be the area of this road, and let be the length of a line passing through the middle of the road. Prove that .

Step-by-Step Solution

1. Finding the Area

The area of the road can be calculated by taking the area of the large outer square and subtracting the area of the inner garden square.
  • The side length of the inner garden is .
  • The width of the road is on all sides. Therefore, the side length of the outer square is .
The area is:
Expanding the square:
Factoring out :
Looking at the worksheet’s structure, it seems to guide you to a specific form. Let’s re-examine the “middle line” approach.

2. Finding the length

The problem states that is the length of a line passing through the middle of the road.
The “middle line” forms a square that sits exactly halfway between the inner and outer boundaries.
  • The distance from the inner garden to the middle of the road is .
  • Therefore, the side length of this “middle square” is .
  • The length of the line passing through the middle (the perimeter of this middle square) is:

3. Proving

Now we substitute into the expression for :
From step 1, we found .
From step 2, we found .
Therefore:

Filling in the Worksheet Blanks

Based on the logic above, here is how the blanks in the image should be filled:
Area is:


— ①
The length of the line passing through the middle of the road is the perimeter of a square with side length because:

Therefore, is:

— ②
From ① and ②, .