One Foot Wonders
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.