5. Use your knowledge of square centimeters and square meters to determine which square unit would be best to find the ares of a phece of paper.

1. Recognize that a piece of paper is relatively small in size. 2. If we measure the dimensions of a piece of paper in centimeters, then its area will be in square centimeters. For example, if a paper measures \( 30\, \text{cm} \) by \( 20\, \text{cm} \), then its area is \[ 30\, \text{cm} \times 20\, \text{cm} = 600\, \text{cm}^2. \] 3. Converting that area into square meters can be done using the conversion \[ 1\, \text{m}^2 = 10\,000\, \text{cm}^2. \] So, \[ 600\, \text{cm}^2 = \frac{600}{10\,000}\, \text{m}^2 = 0.06\, \text{m}^2. \] This is a less intuitive number to work with when dealing with a small area. 4. Since the dimensions of a piece of paper are small, using square centimeters is more direct and convenient for calculation. Thus, for calculating the area of a piece of paper, it is best to use **square centimeters**.