Today is rung 1 of 3 on this topic
Measuring and comparing
Can do: Compares length, weight and capacity directly, and measures with repeated units like blocks or footsteps.
Why it matters
Measuring with a unit is the idea that a ruler encodes. Doing it with blocks first means centimetres later have something to attach to.
What it looks like when it's wobbly
Starts measuring from somewhere other than the end, leaves gaps between the units, or judges heavier purely by size.
⏱️ Two-minute check
"How many blocks long is this book?" Watch how they lay them out.
Solid looks like: Lined up from the very start, touching, with no gaps, and the count is right.
The full activity for this topic · 10 minutes
Measure the House
- 1Choose one unit and stick to it for the whole session.
- 2Measure three things and write the numbers down: sofa, table, their own body.
- 3Show a bad measurement — with gaps — and ask what went wrong.
- 4Order the three results: which is longest, shortest?
- 5Weigh two things by holding one in each hand, and check with a kitchen scale.
If it's too hard
Compare directly with no units at all: put the two things side by side.
If it's too easy
Predict first, then measure, then say how far off the guess was.
Say this
"Start right at the edge, no gaps. Every block has to touch the next one."