Measuring - Grade 3 Workbook

Measuring - Grade 3 Workbook contains lessons and exercises in which both the metric system and the customary system are covered.

First, students learn about units of length. We start by measuring to the nearest quarter of an inch. Since most rulers measure to the eighth or sixteenth part of an inch, it is helpful to cut out a ruler from the lesson that only has tick marks for every fourth of an inch, and tape that onto an existing ruler.

Next, students measure using centimeters and millimeters. They also create line plots from measurement data where the horizontal scale is marked off in quarters of an inch.

The next two lessons help students become familiar with feet, yards, miles, meters, and kilometers—the units for measuring medium and long distances.

Then it is time to measure weight. The first lesson deals with pounds and ounces, and the next one with grams and kilograms. It is very helpful if you can use a kitchen scale for these lessons.

Lastly, we study liquid volume, first of all the customary units (cup, pint, quart, and gallon) and then the metric units (liter and milliliter). The emphasis is on becoming familiar with the customary units of volume and measuring volume in milliliters.

Many of the lessons in this workbook also have an optional section about conversions between measuring units, such as changing three meters into centimeters, or two feet into inches. Even though conversions between units belong to 4th grade in the Common Core Standards, I have included some easy conversion problems because I feel many third graders are ready for them.

We all use various measuring units in our everyday lives, and using them is the key to remembering what they are, how big they are, and what the conversion factors are. Naturally, people in the United States do not use the metric system a lot, while people elsewhere do not use the customary system. The units your child does not use are likely to be forgotten easily. Encourage your student(s) to spend his free play time with measuring devices such as a scale, measuring cups, measuring tapes, and rulers.