Measurement Magic: Making it Fun and Easy

I like to use foldables in my classroom. I created a couple of foldables for teaching the Standard and Metric System. This foldable works best on the larger 12' X 18' construction paper. The picture is on the smaller construction paper but you can see the labels are a little over the edges. I have created one for both the Standard and Metric system. You will need to fold both sides of the construction paper toward the middle and cut to make four windows. I've created a graphic organizer of the entire system, and that goes under the system window. I have students keep this foldable as a reference throughout our measurement unit. Click the picture below for your free copy.

Also here is a great product for teaching metric system conversion. It is the Magnetic Metric Staircase from Educational Insights.

Just stick the chart on your magnetic whiteboard. (The magnet is super heavy duty.) Take the two thick foam pieces, cat and shoe, and place them on the staircase. Place the cat on the board first, then decide where you are converting to, and place the shoe on that step.

Finally, the students count how many steps it takes for the cat to get to the shoe and then either multiply or divide by 10 according to the arrow on the chart. Presto! It's magical how easy this concept is to teach with this handy visual. Educational Insights has also included several printables with a visual included. They have done all the hard work for you. You gotta love this product, and I was thrilled to review it for them.