Explore standard and nonstandard measurement by hunting for objects that are one foot long. Then, work together to create a collaborative story about the items they find.

Learning Goals

• Be Curious
• Build STEM Knowledge
• Communicate Thinking

Materials Required

• 12” ruler
• String or yarn cut to 12”
• Video recording device (optional)

Instructions

• Show your child a ruler and explain to them that the “foot” is commonly used to measure length in the U.S. Give a few examples of objects that are about one foot long (e.g. a book, a computer, a piece of paper).
• Give your child one piece of string.
• Challenge them to search for objects that are about one-foot long. Encourage your child to use their string to measure an item’s circumference or length.
• After they have finished gathering objects, discuss them, and work together to sort objects as being shorter, longer, or exactly one foot.
• Support your child to tell a story that incorporates the objects they find. If possible, take a video as they act out it out.

Tips for Adults

• Have your child use their own foot as a nonstandard unit of measurement and go on an additional hunt for objects that match that length.
• Encourage them to consider objects that are not just straight (e.g. is your waist about one foot around?) Introduce vocabulary like circumference and diameter.
• Challenge your child to find 5 objects that are exactly one foot long, 5 objects that are shorter, and 5 objects that are longer, using their string as a measuring tool.