Metric Measurement FOSS- Length

Which of these standard units of LENGTH is most often used in science investigations?

• mile

• inch

• yard

• meter

Answer explanation

In the U.S. customary system of measurement the inch, foot, yard, and mile are units for measuring length.

Because scientists need to communicate with other countries the METRIC system is used. The standard unit for measuring LENGTH in is the METER.

A good ESTIMATE of the LENGTH of a piece of copy paper is:

• 3000 cm

• 300 cm

• 30 cm

• 3 cm

Answer explanation

The measure of the LENGTH (the longer dimension) of a piece of copy paper is 11 inches.

One inch is 2.54 cm. so it is actually about 28 cm, closest to 30 cm. estimate

3 cm. is too small, 300 cm is 3 meters long, making 3,000 cm way too big.

How many centimeters equals one meter?

• 1,000

• 100

• 10

• 1

Answer explanation

The prefix cent- means 100. A century is 100 years. In money, it takes 100 cents to equal one dollar. The dollar is divided into 100 equal parts.

In the metric system, the meter is the standard unit for measuring length. When divided into 100 equal parts, each part is called a centimeter.

Which of these materials would make the best meter tape?

• elastic

• play dough

• rubber

• paper

Answer explanation

When measuring, the tool used needs to remain standard or unchanging.

Elastic is used in clothing waistbands and is stretchy so it would NOT make a good material for measuring.

Play dough would be difficult to use because it is heavy, sticky and may not stay the same size or shape.

Rubber is used to make rubber bands, another stretchy material.

Given these choices, paper is the best material for making a meter tape.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ETS1-1

NGSS.MS-ETS1-2

Which of these UNITS should you use to tell someone the DISTANCE between two cities, like Cincinnati and Dayton?

• milliliter

• millimeter

• kiloliter

• kilometer

Answer explanation

Liters are the unit for measuring volume in the metric system, so both

A: milliliter and C: kiloliter would not be used for measuring distance.

A millimeter is very small it takes 1,000 millimeters to make just one meter.

To measure long distances between cities we need a larger unit than a meter. The prefix kilo- means X1,000, so a kilometer is 1,000 meters.

The height of my teacher is closest to:

• 2 mm

• 2 cm

• 2 m

• 2 km

Answer explanation

Millimeters and centimeters are used for measuring small items like paper clips or pencils.

A meter is about the height of a doorknob. Most adults are taller than one door knob, but not as tall as the height of the door which is larger than 2 meters.

Two kilometers would be used to measure a longer distance and would be equal to 2,000 meters. Too big!

If you wanted to know if a desk could fit through a doorway but you did not have a meter tape or ruler, you could figure this out using any of the following EXCEPT

• a rubber band

• a craft stick

• a sheet of paper

• a wooden toothpick

Answer explanation

Answer choices B, C, and D could all be used to estimate both the size of the desk and the doorway. A craft stick, paper, and a toothpick would not change in size when measuring.

A rubber band is stretch and changes in size so it would NOT make a good tool to estimate length.

Tags

NGSS.3-5-ETS1-2

What is the best UNIT to measure the thickness of a dime?

• millimeter

• centimeter

• meter

• kilometer