Name: ________________
Date: _________________
Hour: _________________
Activity 1.3.1
Standard and Metric Measuring
Introduction
Measurements are seen and used every day. You have probably worked with measurements at
home and at school. Measurements can be seen in the form of inches, pounds, hours, cups, meters,
grams, liters, etc. Standard or Customary units are usually written with fractions or mixed fractions.
Metric or SI (International System of Units) values are written as decimals or mixed decimals.
When measuring length in the customary system, the common tools are rulers, yardsticks, and tape
measures; the common units are inches, feet, and yards. It is important that you are able to convert
between these. Make sure you show your units.
1 foot (ft) = 12 inches (in.)
1 yard (yd) = 36 inches (in.) = 3 feet (ft)
The metric system is the most widely used system of measurement in the world. The United States is
the only major country that still has a limited use of this system of measurement. Most U.S.
businesses have converted to this system due to the fact that they are competing in a global market
that is based on the metric system. The metric system is based on powers of ten. The chart below
shows the units of the metric system; meters are used to measure length.
Power of 10
Multiplier
Prefix
Pnemonic
Abbreviations:
Length
Mass
Volume
Thousands
Hundreds
Tens
Basic unit
Tenths
Hundredths
Thousandths
103
102
101
100
10-1
10-2
10-3
1000
100
10
1
0.1
0.01
0.001
Kilo
Hecto
Deca
UNIT
Deci
Centi
Milli
King
Henry
Died
Unexpectedly
Drinking
Chocolate
Milk
km
hm
dam
m (meter)
dm
cm
mm
kg
g
(gram)
mg
kL
L
(liter)
mL
Converting metric measurements can be done by multiplying or dividing by 10, 100, 1000, and so on.
Follow these steps:
1. Count the number of zeros in the number you are multiplying or dividing by.
2.
If you are multiplying, move the decimal to the right that number of places.
3.
If you are dividing, move the decimal to the left that number of places.
4.
Don’t forget to include units.
Page 1
Occasionally you may need to convert from English to Metric units or vice versa.
Below is a conversion chart for you to use for your conversions.
Convert from:
mile
inch
inch
foot
yard
kilometer
millimeter
centimeter
meter
meter
To:
kilometer
millimeter
centimeter
meter
meter
mile
inch
inch
foot
yard
Multiply by:
1.609347 km/mi
25.4 mm/in.
2.54 cm/in.
0.3048 m/ft
0.9144 m/yd
0.6214 mi/km
0.0394 in./mm
0.3937 in./cm
3.281 ft/m
1.094 yd/m
Equipment

Measuring devices (ruler, metric ruler, yard stick, meter stick, tape measure)
Procedure
In this activity you will have a chance to practice your Metric and English measuring skills.
1.
Complete the English and Metric measurement questions in this activity.
2.
Complete the “Educated Guess” columns of the chart.
3.
Obtain several measuring devices from your instructor and complete the actual measurement
section of the chart.
4.
Complete the conclusion questions and turn in to your instructor for grading.
Complete the chart below by entering an educated guess of the length of each object in the
units provided. Then obtain the proper measuring tool: ruler, metric ruler, yard stick, meter stick,
or tape measure. Record the correct measurement in the chart. Don’t forget to include units.
Item
Educated
Educated
Guess - English Guess - Metric
3-Ringed
Binder height
Rectangular
Table width
Door height
in.
cm
ft
m
yd
m
Pencil length
in.
mm
ft
m
in.
cm
yd
m
Red Shelf width
Door Window
width
Marker Board
width
Page 2
Actual English
Measurement
Actual Metric
Measurement
Answer the following questions:
1. Does the ruler on the left measure in
Metric or English units?
____________________________
2. Describe how do you know this? (#1)
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
8. What is the equivalent of measurement
C in inches? Using the conversion table
on page 2, round answer to nearest
tenth, and show all of your work.
3. What is the distance from the end of the
ruler to each point?
Don’t forget to include units used!
A. _________________
B. _________________
C. _________________
D. _________________
Final answer: __________
E. _________________
5. Does the ruler in the bottom-left corner
measure in Metric or English units?
____________________________
6. Describe how do you know this? (#5)
____________________________
____________________________
____________________________
7. What is the distance from the end of
the ruler to each point?
Don’t forget to include units used!
8. What is the equivalent of measurement
C in millimeters? Using the conversion
table on page 2, round answer to
nearest tenth, and show all of your
work.
A. _________________
B. _________________
C. _________________
D. _________________
Final answer: __________
E. _________________
Page 3
Conclusion
Directions: Use complete sentences to explain your response to each question.
1. Which measurement system is easier for you to use? Explain why?
______________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________
2. Convert the length of a desk that is 2 feet 6 inch wide to each of the following.
Using the conversion table on page 2, show all of your work with the equations used.
a. _________________ inches (in.)
b. _________________ yards (yd)
c. _________________ meters (m)
d. _________________ centimeters (cm)
3. Convert the length of a 4.5 meter bulletin board to each of the following. Using the
conversion table on page 2, show all of your work with the equations that were used.
a. _________________ centimeters (cm)
b. _________________ decameters (dam)
c. _________________ feet (ft)
d. _________________ yards (yd)
4. List four ways that you have used measurement in your life and identify the units that you
used. For example, I drove 7 miles to get to school today – English units.
______________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________
Page 4