Elementary Measurement - Lesson 3

Return to Lesson 2 or return to Elementary Mathematics UDL Instructional Unit

Objectives

• Students will be able to measure objects using centimeters and meters.
• Students will be able to convert measurements within the metric system.

Essential Questions

• How is the metric system like/unlike the US Customary System?
• What are the most commonly used units of measure within the metric system?
• How do the metric units compare to one another?

Vocabulary

Centimeter - a standard unit of length in the metric system equal to 1/100 of a meter

Convert - to change

Foot - a standard unit of length in the US Customary system equal to 12 inches

Inch - a standard unit of length in the US Customary system equal to 1/12 of a foot

Length - a measurement of the distance from one point to another

Measure - to determine a quantity/amount

Measurement - a determined quantity/amount

Meter - a standard unit of length in the metric system equal to 100 centimeters

Meter Stick - a usually wooden tool used to measure lengths of up to 1 meter

Quantity - an amount of something

Ruler - a wooden or plastic tool used to measure lengths up to 12 inches

Standardized - the same

Tape Measure - a tool consisting of a flexible ribbon of cloth or metal used to measure lengths up to several feet

Unit - a set amount used to consistently determine quantities

US Customary System of Measurement - a system of measurement that includes units such as inches, feet, yards and miles (for length); also referred to as imperial units or English units; this system is not commonly used outside of the United States.

Width - measurement of the distance from one side or edge to the opposite side or edge

Yard Stick - a usually wooden tool used to measure lengths up to 3 feet (1 yard)

Materials

• Chart paper
• Rulers (one for each student)
• Meter sticks (ideally, at least one for each of the 8 stations in the Practice section)
• Charts from lesson 1
• Taped line on the floor from Lesson 1
• Classroom supplies/features from Lesson 1
  • Stapler
  • Bookshelf
  • Doorway
  • Window
  • Filing cabinet
  • Computer screen
  • Hardcover book
  • Picture frame
• Lesson 3 Metric Conversions PowerPoint presentation (print out slides for students)
• Lesson 3 Practice Metric Conversions PowerPoint (do not need to print out the slides for the students, but if you do remove the answers from the slides)
• Individual whiteboards (one per student) and dry erase markers

Introduction

Activate Previous Knowledge

1. Have students name all of the ways they know of to say, "Hello" (e.g., Hi! Hey! Bonjour! Hola!, Konnichiwa!, Ciao!, Aloha!, etc.). If no one knows "Hello!" in any other language than English, you can just write the words on the chart paper and tell him or her language each is.
2. Ask students to think about how each of these words communicates the same thought (a greeting) just in a different way.
3. Show students a ruler and a meter stick.
4. Have students recall how in Lesson 1 they practiced measuring various objects using inches and feet.
5. Explain that in this lesson, they will learn about the metric system, which is like another language people can use to measure objects. Explain that the metric system does not use inches and feet but does use different standardized units, just as if different languages use different words to communicate the same idea, such as "hello".
6. Review the chart made in Lesson 1 whereby different units of measure were listed. Point out which ones, if any, is part of the metric system. (Recall how in Lesson 1 students were asked to list all of the different units of which they had heard. If no one listed any metric units, that's OK. Just point out that the ones on the chart are from the US Customary System and that in this lesson, they'll be learning about metric units.)

Additional Considerations for Emerging Readers and Emerging Communicators

1. Pre-teach a small number of words for the student to contribute. Allow the student to contribute using the preferred mode of communication. Provide pre-recorded (either digital or with assistive technology) contributions for the student to activate.
2. No accommodations.
3. Provide a ruler and meter stick.
4. Provide the (accommodated) tools to measure inches and feet that the student used in Lesson 1.
5. Provide the ruler and meter stick. Provide a graphic representation (symbolic and/or concrete) of basic metric measurements (meters, centimeters, decimeters, etc.) which the student may be familiar.
6. Provide the information previously developed in Lesson 1-Body 3.

Establish Goals/Objectives for the Lesson

1. Continuing with numbers 5 and 6 in section a., let the students know that in this lesson they will measure objects in centimeters and meters, which are basic units of the metric system, and they will learn how to convert units within the metric system, just like they did for inches and feet in the US Customary System. (Note: Students will NOT be asked to convert between systems.)

Additional Considerations for Emerging Readers and Emerging Communicators

2. Provide a graphic or 3-dimensional representation of basic metric measurements (meters, centimeters, decimeters, etc.). Enhance the representations with texture, color, etc.

Body

1. Demonstrate how to measure objects using centimeters and meters with a ruler and meter stick. (Measure the length of a pencil in centimeters, and measure the taped line on the floor from Lesson 1 in meters.) Relate to the students that just as sometimes measuring in feet is more practical/useful than measuring in inches; the same is true for centimeters and meters.

Note: For now, stick to whole number measurements.

2. Using the same 8 objects that were used in the Practice section for Lesson 1, pair the students and have each pair practice measuring the 8 objects in centimeters or meters, depending on the object. Once all students have been to each of the 8 stations, go over the actual measurements of each object.

Note: For now, have students round to the nearest whole number if/when they are measuring objects that do not measure right at the whole number mark.

• Station 1 – the length of a stapler
• Station 2 – the height and/or width of a bookshelf
• Station 3 – the height of a doorway
• Station 4 – the width of a window
• Station 5 – the height and/or width of a filing cabinet
• Station 6 – the height and/or width of a computer screen
• Station 7 – the length of the spine of a book
• Station presentation.8 – the length and/or width of a picture frame

3. Provide students with handouts of the Lesson 3 Metric Conversions PowerPoint
4. Guide students through the presentation. (The PowerPoint is very short and is scripted. You will need to print out the speaker's notes or at least read them ahead of time so that you know when to click for each narration.) The PowerPoint shows students that:
1. 100 centimeters = 1 meter and 1 meter = 100 inches
2. To convert meters to centimeters, multiply by 100
3. To convert centimeters to meters, divide by 100
4. Reference charts (100's times table and basic division by 100) are included in the presentation.
5. The last slide is a summary of how to convert meters to centimeters (and vice versa) and how to convert feet to inches (and vice versa).

Additional Considerations for Emerging Readers and Emerging Communicators

1. Provide a centimeter ruler and a pencil exactly the same length as the teacher's so the student can practice by mirroring what the teacher is demonstrating.

Other rulers that accommodate the student more effectively can be used, such as: digital rulers,

• a ruler with tactile qualities
• or a piece of paper laminated on card stock may be substituted;
• digital rulers,
• bendable/foldable rulers,
• tactile rulers,
• transparent/translucent rulers,
• simplified rulers with only centimeters marked.

Provide adaptations such as hook-and-loop tape or a "handle" to the ruler if the student's fine motor skills do not allow him/her to manipulate the tool(s).

Provide decreasing physical assistance to help the student manipulate the materials and mirror the skill. As the teacher measures the tape:

• place a dot (removable) or other marker for each centimeter/meter along a number line, which the student can then use for counting at the end.
• place a manipulative in a container for each centimeter/meter
• have the student place a tick mark, tally, or write the numeral for each centimeter/meter in his /her math journal.
• have the student enter each centimeter/meter into a calculator (or talking calculator, large button calculator, etc.) using the "+1" function.

Pre-teach concepts and skills the teacher is modeling (include systematic instruction techniques, such as task analysis, prompting, shaping, time delay, etc.).

2. Use the station activities as opportunities to instruct and practice performance. Provide accommodations to the materials such as those described in step 1. As the teacher models how to correctly measure the objects at each station, quietly remind the student how he/she will measure them. Since the station activity is instructional practice, the student can receive guidance at each station, possibly through errorless learning techniques, resulting in correctly measuring each object.
3. Provide a copy of the PowerPoint.

• Enhance with tactile qualities as necessary.
• Provide the PowerPoint digitally with animations and sound.

4. Guide the student through his/her personal PowerPoint copy.

• Present graphic or tactile representations of salient vocabulary as needed.
• Provide a model or template of the conversion formulas as they are discussed on the slides.

Practice

1. Present the students with the Lesson 3 Practice Metric Conversions PowerPoint presentation. (You do not necessarily need to give handouts of this one. If you do, remember to remove the answers from the slides before printing.)
1. Each slide presents the students with a conversion problem.
2. Students are asked to decide whether they would need to multiply or divide in order to find the equivalent measurement. (Remind students they may refer to their PowerPoint notes.)
3. Students are asked to write and complete each problem on their whiteboards.
4. The final slide tasks the students to complete a chart whereby they must convert meters to centimeters and centimeters to meters. Again, students should write the problems and their answers on their whiteboards.

Additional Considerations for Emerging Readers and Emerging Communicators

1. Provide models for the problems that the student can use to copy on the whiteboard. Provide prewritten cards with the numbers and functions that the student can use to "write" the problems (touching, moving, selecting by eye-gaze, etc.). Prewrite the problems on the whiteboard. Provide the problems digitally and allow the student to solve the problems digitally.
2. Provide math function options for the student to choose from. Allow him/her to choose using the preferred mode of communication.
3. Allow the student to use a calculator (traditional or digital, talking, large buttons, etc.) to solve the problems. Provide number cards that the student can use as answers for the problems, process cards, and math function cards instead of writing them. Reduce the difficulty of the problems. For example, only give the student problems that have meters in single digits (1-9).
4. Continue with the same supports used in the previous steps.

Closure

a. Revisit/Review Lesson and Objectives –

1. Remind students that the goal for this lesson was to learn how to convert meters to centimeters and centimeters to meters.
2. Ask students to explain how to convert meters to centimeters.
3. Ask students to explain how to convert centimeters to meters.
4. Ask students to compare the units of the US Customary System and the metric system:

• Which metric unit is similar to feet?
• Which metric unit is similar to centimeter?
• Are the US Customary units and the metric units the same?
• What did you notice about converting metric units versus converting US Customary units?

Additional Considerations for Emerging Readers and Emerging Communicators

1. During the review, provide access to the same measuring tools (with any supports necessary) that he/she used in previous activities in this unit (once a student demonstrates that a support of any kind is successful in helping him/her learn, it is important to use that same support whenever appropriate; consistency is important).
2. Allow the student to answer the questions using his/her preferred mode of communication (including AAC and AT).

• Allow the student to create the formulas for conversion (meters to centimeters and centimeters to meters) by writing, manipulating prewritten labels, numbers, and functions, etc., and use those formulas to answer the questions.
• Provide formulas and allow the student to select them as answers to the teacher's questions.

3. Allow the student to answer the questions using his/her preferred mode of communication (including AAC and AT).

• Allow the student to create the formulas for conversion (meters to centimeters and centimeters to meters) by writing, manipulating prewritten labels, numbers, and functions, etc., and use those formulas to answer the questions.
• Provide formulas and allow the student to select them as answers to the teacher's questions.

4. Allow the student to answer the questions using his/her preferred mode of communication. Pre-teach any concepts that the student may not yet fully understand (big/little, same/different, etc.). Preplan a piece of information for the student to contribute.

• Provide the tools the student used to measure feet, inches, meters, and centimeters.
• Have the student physically or digitally compare the sizes of the units in each set and categorize each unit as either "bigger" or "smaller" (longer/shorter).

5. Have him/her use that categorization to determine that feet are similar to meters and inches are similar to centimeters.

• Allow the student to look at both the metric and customary conversion charts and formulas and point out that when converting "big" to "little", you must multiply and when converting "little" to "big", you have to divide.
• Pre-teach any concepts that the student may not yet fully understand (big/little, same/different, etc.). Preplan a piece of information for the student to contribute.

Exit Assessment

1. Group the students in pairs.
2. Have each student come up with a (metric) conversion problem and write it on his/her whiteboard.
3. Have students exchange whiteboards with their partners and solve their partners' problem.
4. Have each pair present both of their problems and answers to the class and explain how they solved them.

Additional Considerations for Emerging Readers and Emerging Communicators

1. Allow the student to write a conversion problem using any of the supports or accommodations that he/she used in previous activities in this unit (once a student demonstrates that a support of any kind is successful in helping him/her learn, it is important to use that same support whenever appropriate; consistency is important).
• Give the student a chance to do this independently (this is assessment, so it is important to determine the accuracy of the student's independent performance).
  • If the student cannot do this step independently, assist as necessary so the other student has a correct problem to solve.
2. Allow the student to solve the partner's conversion problem using any of the supports or accommodations that he/she used in previous activities in this unit (once a student demonstrates that a support of any kind is successful in helping him/her learn, it is important to use that same support whenever appropriate; consistency is important).
• Give the student a chance to do this independently (this is assessment, so it is important to determine the accuracy of the student's independent performance).
  • If the student cannot do this step independently, make a note of this and assist as necessary so the problem is solved correctly.
3. Have the student point to each step of the equation sequentially. Have the student present his/her solution digitally using AT.

Return to Lesson 2 Proceed to Lesson 4