Class 6 Maths – Chapter 9: Symmetry
Learning Objectives - Chapter 9: Symmetry
- Understand line symmetry and reflection symmetry
- Identify symmetrical objects in daily life
- Find lines of symmetry in various shapes
- Understand rotational symmetry
- Complete symmetrical figures and patterns
- Create symmetrical designs and artwork
Important Concepts - Symmetry
Line Symmetry
Rotational Symmetry
Reflection Symmetry
Point Symmetry
Key Symmetry Principles:
Exploring Symmetry! ⇌
Welcome to Chapter 9: Symmetry! This chapter introduces you to the beautiful world of symmetry, which we see all around us in nature, art, architecture, and everyday objects.
We'll explore different types of symmetry - line symmetry (reflection symmetry), rotational symmetry, and point symmetry. You'll learn to identify lines of symmetry in various shapes, complete symmetrical figures, and understand how symmetry makes objects balanced and aesthetically pleasing.
By mastering symmetry, you'll develop visual thinking skills and a deeper appreciation for patterns in mathematics, art, and the natural world!
Line Symmetry
Mirror reflection across a line
Rotational Symmetry
Looks same after rotation
Reflection Symmetry
Bilateral symmetry
Point Symmetry
Same from all directions
NCERT Textbook Exercises & Solutions Class 6 Chapter 9: Symmetry
Complete step-by-step solutions for all NCERT textbook exercises
Look at the flower, rangoli, butterfly, pinwheel, and cloud figures.
Flower: Has multiple lines of symmetry (6)
Rangoli: Has multiple lines of symmetry (4)
Butterfly: Has one line of symmetry down the center
Pinwheel: No line symmetry (has rotational symmetry)
Cloud: No line symmetry (irregular shape)
A line of symmetry divides a figure into two identical mirror images.
Check for vertical, horizontal, and diagonal lines that could be lines of symmetry.
For each figure, draw the lines where the figure can be folded to match exactly.
A square can be folded along vertical, horizontal, and both diagonal axes.
Vertical line: 1
Horizontal line: 1
Diagonals: 2
Total: 4 lines of symmetry
A square has all sides equal, while a rectangle has only opposite sides equal.
Fold a non-square rectangle along its diagonal. The two halves won't match exactly.
The diagonal of a non-square rectangle is not a line of symmetry.
Points on the line (A and C) stay in place.
Point B and D swap positions.
Points on the horizontal line stay in place.
Top and bottom points swap positions.
The holes will be symmetric with respect to the fold line.
For a single fold, holes will appear in pairs symmetric about the fold line.
Draw the line that would make the hole pattern symmetric.
Each hole has a mirror image across each line of symmetry.
For each given hole, find its reflection across each symmetry line.
Mark all the reflected positions to complete the pattern.
Determine how many times and in what directions the paper is folded.
The final shape will have symmetry corresponding to the folds.
Imagine unfolding the paper to see the complete pattern.
Some shapes can have both 4 and 8 lines of symmetry if they have multiple symmetric elements.
An equilateral triangle has 3 lines of symmetry (through each vertex to midpoint of opposite side).
A regular hexagon has 6 lines of symmetry (through opposite vertices and through midpoints of opposite sides).
Look for any lines that would create identical halves.
Draw imaginary lines and check if both sides match.
Mark all valid lines of symmetry on each figure.
Look for repeating elements and symmetric arrangements.
Common lines include vertical, horizontal, and diagonal axes.
Ensure each proposed line truly creates mirror images.
Draw an isosceles triangle (only two equal sides).
Draw an equilateral triangle (all sides equal).
Draw a scalene triangle (all sides different).
No, a triangle cannot have exactly two lines of symmetry. If it has two, it must have three (equilateral).
Draw a heart shape or a teardrop shape.
Draw an oval or ellipse.
Draw a curved pattern with four-fold symmetry, like a clover shape.
Each point on one side has a mirror image on the other side.
Identify important points on the given part of the figure.
Find the mirror images of these points and connect them appropriately.
The figure must be symmetric about both given lines.
Create the mirror image across the first blue line.
Ensure the resulting figure is also symmetric about the second blue line.
Understand what parts are already present.
Decide what symmetric shape you can create by adding two lines.
Add two lines that complete a symmetric figure.
Smallest angle = 360° ÷ 5 = 72°
Angles: 72°, 144°, 216°, 288°, 360°
Smallest angle = 360° ÷ 6 = 60°
Angles: 60°, 120°, 180°, 240°, 300°, 360°
360° ÷ 7 = 51³⁄₇°
No, 360 is not divisible by 7, so it's not a whole number.
51³⁄₇° (fifty-one and three-sevenths degrees)
Angles: 90°, 180°, 270°, 360°
Only 360° (full rotation)
Angles: 180°, 360°
These are angles less than 360° for which the figure looks the same after rotation.
Identify figures that have rotational symmetry of order 2 or more.
Figures with order 2, 3, 4, etc. have multiple angles of symmetry.
Order = 360° ÷ smallest angle of symmetry
Figure with 180° symmetry: order = 360÷180 = 2
Figure with 90° symmetry: order = 360÷90 = 4
Figure with 60° symmetry: order = 360÷60 = 6
Figure with 120° symmetry: order = 360÷120 = 3
Figure with 72° symmetry: order = 360÷72 = 5
Divide circle into 3 equal sectors and color them in a repeating pattern.
Divide circle into 4 equal sectors and color them in a repeating pattern.
Any divisor of 360: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 12, 15, 18, 20, 24, 30, 36, 40, 45, 60, 72, 90, 120, 180, 360
Need figures with both line symmetry and rotational symmetry.
Regular pentagon (5 lines of symmetry, order 5 rotational)
Regular hexagon (6 lines of symmetry, order 6 rotational)
Only equilateral triangle has 3 lines and order 3 rotational symmetry.
Isosceles triangle (has one line of symmetry but no rotational symmetry).
Parallelogram (has 180° rotational symmetry but no line symmetry unless it's a rectangle).
Isosceles trapezoid (has one line of symmetry but no rotational symmetry).
If smallest angle is A, then angles of symmetry are A, 2A, 3A, ... until 360°.
60°, 120°, 180°, 240°, 300°, 360°
If 60° is an angle of symmetry and there are two smaller ones, then the smallest must divide 60°.
The two smaller angles could be 20° and 40° (since 3×20=60) or 30° and 60° (but 60° is given as third).
If 60° is the third angle, then smallest is 20° (20°, 40°, 60°).
For rotational symmetry, 360° must be divisible by the smallest angle.
360 ÷ 45 = 8 (integer) → Yes, possible
360 ÷ 17 ≈ 21.176 (not integer) → No, not possible
Yes, the triangular shape has 3 lines of symmetry.
Yes, it has 3-fold rotational symmetry with angles 120°, 240°, 360°.
A regular n-sided polygon has n lines of symmetry.
Triangle: 3, Quadrilateral: 4, Pentagon: 5, Hexagon: 6, Heptagon: 7, Octagon: 8, Nonagon: 9, Decagon: 10
The Koch snowflake has 3 lines of symmetry and 3 angles of symmetry (120°, 240°, 360°).
This remains constant through the sequence: 3 lines and 3 angles of symmetry.
The Ashoka Chakra has 24 spokes arranged equally.
It has 24 lines of symmetry (through each spoke and between spokes)
It has 24 angles of symmetry (360° ÷ 24 = 15° intervals)
20 Additional Practice Questions
Extra questions to master Symmetry
Multiple Choice Questions
- How many lines of symmetry does a square have?
A) 1 B) 2 C) 4 D) 8 - Which of the following has infinite lines of symmetry?
A) Square B) Rectangle C) Circle D) Triangle - What is the order of rotational symmetry of an equilateral triangle?
A) 1 B) 2 C) 3 D) 4 - Which letter of the English alphabet has both horizontal and vertical lines of symmetry?
A) A B) B C) H D) M - A figure has rotational symmetry of order 4. What is the angle of rotation?
A) 45° B) 60° C) 90° D) 120°
Fill in the Blanks
- A figure has _______ symmetry if it can be divided into two identical mirror halves.
- The number of times a figure fits into itself in one full rotation is called _______.
- A rectangle has _______ lines of symmetry.
- A regular pentagon has _______ lines of symmetry.
- A figure with rotational symmetry of order 2 looks the same after a rotation of _______.
True or False
- All triangles have at least one line of symmetry. (True/False)
- A square has more lines of symmetry than a rectangle. (True/False)
- Every figure with line symmetry also has rotational symmetry. (True/False)
- The letter 'S' has line symmetry. (True/False)
- A circle has infinite order of rotational symmetry. (True/False)
Short Answer Questions
- Draw a square and show all its lines of symmetry.
- Identify the number of lines of symmetry in a regular hexagon.
- Give two examples from nature that show symmetry.
- Draw the reflection of the word "MOM" across a vertical line.
- What is the difference between line symmetry and rotational symmetry?
Answer Key for Practice Questions
Multiple Choice:
- 1. C) 4
- 2. C) Circle
- 3. C) 3
- 4. C) H
- 5. C) 90°
Fill in the Blanks:
- 6. line
- 7. order of rotational symmetry
- 8. 2
- 9. 5
- 10. 180°
True or False:
- 11. False
- 12. True
- 13. False
- 14. False
- 15. True
Short Answers:
- 16. Square has 4 lines of symmetry (2 through midpoints, 2 through vertices)
- 17. Regular hexagon has 6 lines of symmetry
- 18. Butterfly, starfish, snowflake, human face, leaves (any two)
- 19. The reflection would look the same as "MOM" has vertical symmetry
- 20. Line symmetry: mirror reflection; Rotational symmetry: looks same after rotation
Chapter Summary - Symmetry
Key Concepts:
- Line Symmetry (Reflection Symmetry): A figure has line symmetry if it can be divided into two identical mirror halves by a line. This line is called the line of symmetry.
- Rotational Symmetry: A figure has rotational symmetry if it looks the same after some rotation (less than 360°). The number of times it matches itself during a full rotation is called the order of rotational symmetry.
- Point Symmetry: A figure has point symmetry if it looks the same when rotated 180° around a central point.
- Square: 4 lines of symmetry
- Rectangle: 2 lines of symmetry
- Circle: Infinite lines of symmetry
- Equilateral Triangle: 3 lines of symmetry
- Isosceles Triangle: 1 line of symmetry
- Scalene Triangle: No lines of symmetry
- Regular Pentagon: 5 lines of symmetry
- Regular Hexagon: 6 lines of symmetry
Rotational Symmetry in Common Shapes:
- Square: Order 4 (90°, 180°, 270°, 360°)
- Rectangle: Order 2 (180°, 360°)
- Circle: Infinite order
- Equilateral Triangle: Order 3 (120°, 240°, 360°)
- Regular Pentagon: Order 5 (72°, 144°, 216°, 288°, 360°)
- Regular Hexagon: Order 6 (60°, 120°, 180°, 240°, 300°, 360°)
- Vertical Symmetry: A, H, I, M, O, T, U, V, W, X, Y
- Horizontal Symmetry: B, C, D, E, H, I, O, X
- Both Vertical and Horizontal: H, I, O, X
- No Symmetry: F, G, J, K, L, N, P, Q, R, S, Z
Applications:
- Art and design patterns
- Architecture and building design
- Nature (butterflies, flowers, snowflakes)
- Manufacturing and engineering
- Logo design and branding
- Textile and fashion design
- Photography composition
Teaching Guide & Notes
📚 Effective Teaching Strategies:
- Use actual mirrors to demonstrate line symmetry
- Organize symmetry hunts in the classroom or school
- Use paper folding and cutting activities
- Incorporate art projects with symmetrical designs
- Use pattern blocks and tangrams
🎯 Common Learning Gaps:
- Confusion between line symmetry and rotational symmetry
- Difficulty identifying all lines of symmetry in complex shapes
- Trouble understanding order of rotational symmetry
- Difficulty completing symmetrical figures
🔍 Key Concepts to Emphasize:
- The mirror test for line symmetry
- Difference between line and rotational symmetry
- Relationship between order of rotation and angle of rotation
- Symmetry in everyday objects and nature
- Practical applications of symmetry