How Big is a Foot?

In class we studied measurement.  We were reviewing inch, foot, and yard.  I showed the kids Keynote.  I asked them to create a "presentation" showing pictures on the slides that could be measured by inches, feet, or yards.

My students were VERY excited!  We talked about how an inch is about the length of your first finger between the middle and top knuckles.

Student work - just a piece.
This shows  "about" an inch.

We said how a foot is about as long as from your elbow to your fist - closed.  Last was a yard and if you stretch one arm out and the other arm is in a fist by your shoulder (elbow down) - that is about a yard.

The kids learned to copy images from the Internet (and give credit to sources).  For today we used www.pics4learning.com.  It is a site with many free pictures to use.  They also were encouraged to go around the classroom and find things that measured by an inches, feet, or yards.

I found that setting them up for the project took almost no time at all.  I modeled how to add pictures from the Internet or how to find the pictures once inside of keynote that are from the camera roll.  I also showed them how to add pages and text.  Then - I set them free to find the objects.

This is a visual project.  When the kids get to a question like:

Which would you use to measure a bathtub?
A) inches
B) feet
C) yards

I would hope they could visualize the bathtub.  Visualize about what an inch, foot, or yard looks like and then make the correct choice.

Last, we read the story by Rolf Myller entitled How Big is a Foot? It is about a king trying to make a bed for his wife's birthday.  Beds had not been invented in the story.  He measures around her walking with his feet.  BUT - the apprentice is making the bed and he is a boy with very small feet.  Even when he follows the kings directions - the bed is the wrong size.  It is a humorous story about why units of measure came to be.

As you know - I am still learning.  I will have to edit this blog later.  I have tried emailing and a few other things - but I cannot seem to send the student work to this computer OR work on it from the student's ipad.  You will know when I edit - I will add it in the title.  Sorry.  More to come....