Measurement Teaching Resources
Is your math class ready to dive into length measurement, measuring objects, and more measurement practice? Say hello to printable measurement worksheets, games, and digital activities created by teachers for elementary teachers!
This collection of teaching resources was created by our expert math teachers to help students meet Common Core and state-level standards. Each printable and digital download has undergone a rigorous review by the teachers on the Teach Starter team to ensure they’re student-ready — so you can cut down on lesson planning time!
New to teaching this part of the math curriculum? Our teacher team knows what it’s like to suddenly teach a brand-new grade level, so we’ve put together a quick guide to teaching measurement!
What Are the 4 steps of Teaching and Learning Measurement?
Elementary students have to learn a long list of measurement concepts during their stint in elementary school, including:
- length
- liquid volume
- elapsed time
- mass (weight)
- area
- volume of three-dimensional figures
The good news for teachers: Most measurement concepts have very real-world applications for students. That means there's a whole world of ways to get students excited about reading a ruler or tape measure or weighing heavy objects on a scale.
But before you can get there, let's start with the basic steps to work through when you're teaching students how to measure ... well ... anything!
- Direct comparison — One of the earliest steps of learning measurement is learning the attributes that are being measured. For example, students need to learn what length is if they're ever going to measure it. That's where direct comparison (and step 2, indirect comparison), come in. If you put 2 objects side by side, students can directly compare which is longer and which is shorter and start to understand how to measure an object.
- Indirect comparison — What happens when you can't directly compare two objects? You can add a third as a reference point for indirect comparison, thereby increasing student understanding of the attribute being measured.
- Measuring with non-standard units or informal units — Just as students need to understand the attribute of measuring, they also need to understand the concept of the units we use to measure such as inches or pounds. Using non-standard units is the first step to teaching the concept of units, offering students the chance to work with different objects, counting how many of these "units" it takes to make up another. This is the fundamental base of measurement.
- Measuring with standard units — Finally, in the final step of teaching measurement, students move on to using the formal units of measurement and learn to use measurement instruments.
Why Is Teaching Measurement Important?
There are concrete uses for learning measurement that will surely spring to mind — from using a tape measure to measure a space in a home to weighing ingredients when baking to determining the capacity of a juice glass before pouring in the liquid. These are all means for quantifying our environment.
But the benefits of teaching students about measuring lines with a ruler or figuring out mass measurements from largest to smallest go well beyond the obvious. Learning to measure helps students develop spatial and number skills.
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What Day Is It? Calendar Math Worksheet
Engage students in daily math review lessons with a printable ‘What Day Is It’ Calendar Math Worksheet.
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Months of the Year Worksheets
Read, write, and spell the months of the year with a set of printable Months of the Year worksheets for kindergarten.
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What Does the Clock Say? - Telling Time Game
Solve the math riddles to find the clocks that show the correct time with a fun Time to 5 Minute Telling Time Game.
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What Time Is It? Telling Time Playdough Mats
Use playdough to practice telling time to the hour and half hour with printable playdough mats for kindergarten.
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Color By Code Worksheet- Telling Time to 5 Minutes
Practice telling time to the nearest five minutes with a fun Color By Code worksheet.
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Days of the Week - Months of the Year Word Search
Practice spelling the days of the week and months of the year with printable Day and Month Word Search worksheets.
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Telling Time to the Hour and Half Hour Teaching Slides
Teach your first graders how to tell time to the hour and half hour with an interactive teaching slide deck.
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Time by the Minute - 3rd Grade Math Interactive
Practice telling time by the minute with an interactive Time-telling digital learning activity.
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Prism Party! –Volume of Composite Rectangular Prisms – Google Slides Interactive Activity
Practice how to find the volume of composite figures with this interactive activity.
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Area Worksheets
Practice finding the area of different shapes with this set of 4 worksheets.
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Telling Time Cards
Identify the time on the analog clock and use a clothespin to mark the correct digital time.
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12-Hour Clock Template
A template for an interactive clock that displays hours, minutes, and wording.
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Build a Calendar - Following Instructions Worksheets
Practice following directions and using a calendar with a pack of 12 printable calendar worksheets.
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Roll and Write - Telling Time Dice Game
Practice telling time and have fun learning how to tell time with a Roll and Write Telling Time Dice Game!
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Order Up! Elapsed Time Puzzles
Practice determining elapsed time with a printable pack of nine ‘Order Up! Elapsed Time Cut and Paste Puzzle Strips.
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Days of the Week Activity Mat
Review the order and spelling of the days in a week with a printable Days of the Week Activity Mat!
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Days of the Week Spelling Worksheets
Use these Days of the Week Spelling worksheets to help your students practice reading, writing, and spelling the Days of the week.
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Elapsed Time Interactive Word Problems Game
Practice solving elapsed time word problems with an interactive quiz game for 3rd and 4th graders.
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What Can You Do? 1st Grade Time Printables
Help your students understand time increments with a pair of cut-and-paste math worksheets for first grade.
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Elapsed Time Word Problems - Worksheets
Solve elapsed time word problems and build telling time skills with printable time and elapsed time worksheets.
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Hunt & Find - Telling Time Clock Game
Tell time to the nearest minute with a Tell the Time Clock Game for 3rd graders.
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It's About Time! Telling Time Unit Introduction Slides
Introduce your students to the concepts and history of time and for investigate the relationship between units of time with an interactive teaching slide deck.
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Months of the Year - Ordering Worksheet
Practice ordering months of the year with a pack of printable months of the year worksheets for kindergarten.
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Perimeter Task Cards
Use these perimeter tasks to give your students practice with this fundamental measurement skill.
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Converting Units of Length – Task Cards
Use ratio reasoning to convert the length of metric and customary units with this set of 24 task cards.
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Volume of Composite Rectangular Prisms Match-Up!
Match equations with composite figures and determine the volume with this match-up activity.
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Volume Word Problems – Task Cards
Use this set of 24 word problem task cards when calculating the volume of rectangular prisms.
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Metric Units of Measurement – Poster Pack
Use this set of metric conversion posters when learning about units of length, weight, and capacity.
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Perimeter Word Problems Worksheet
Get students solving real-life perimeter word problems with a printable worksheet for 3rd and 4th grade.
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Counting Coins - Interactive Activities
Practice creating amounts up to a $1.00 with a variety of coins.
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Mini-Mystery – Who Won the Race?
A fun, logic-based activity where students read clues to solve a mystery.
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Three Little Pigs Area Worksheet
A worksheet to practice finding area using square units.
- Measurement Worksheets
- Measurement Games
- Measurement Posters
- Measurement Templates
- Measurement Projects
- Measurement for Pre-K
- Measurement for Kindergarten
- Measurement for 1st Grade
- Measurement for 2nd Grade
- Measurement for 3rd Grade
- Measurement for 4th Grade
- Measurement for 5th Grade
- Measurement for 6th Grade