The document discusses calculating the areas and perimeters of different shapes to determine how much material is needed for various projects. It provides examples of calculating the border needed for a star-shaped lamp, the paint needed to repaint a border, the nail polish cover needed for a bottle, the lamination needed for a library sign, and the marker needed to recolor a square sticky note. In each case, it gives the dimensions of the shape and shows the mathematical explanation for determining the total measurement around the shape or its total area.