Measuring Madness
In this activity, we will explore simple math skills using standardized measuring skills
Learning Objectives/Opportunities
Build basic knowledge about numbers, measuring, and fractions
Developmental skills: hand-eye coordination, fine and gross motor skills
Materials:
Measuring cups and spoon
Small countable food items (e.g., blueberries, goldfish crackers, cheerios, chocolate chips)
Activity Instructions
Place all the available measuring cups and spoons on a flat surface
Arrange the measuring instruments from smallest to biggest
Starting with the smallest spoon, help your child to measure their food, for this example, we are going to use blueberries. Once the spoon is full, dump the blueberries into a bowl. One by one, count the blueberries the small spoon held while moving the blueberries to the second bowl.
Record the number in your Measuring Food chart
Repeat for each spoon and cup moving up the line until the largest cup.
For older children, you can work on simple fractions using measuring cups. Fill up the 1/3 cup and dump into the 1 cup measure. Repeat 2 more times until full to demonstrate that 3 (1/3) cups make 1 cup. Repeat with 1/4 and 1/2 cups.
Examining the Experiment:
In this activity, we practiced our math skills with simple standard measurements including cups, tablespoons, and teaspoons. This allows us to compare and contrast sizes, become familiar with numbers and fractions, as well as practice our fine and gross motor skills as well as our hand-eye coordination. When properly supervised, the kitchen provides an excellent place for learning math, science, and other critical developmental skills. Be sure to incorporate these skills into your holiday baking this season!
Science Extension: Non-standardized Measurements
There are some measurements that are not standardized. This includes measurements like a pinch of salt or a dash of seasoning. While these do not require a specific amount, you can measure these using our new measuring skills.
Take a pinch of salt and select your smallest measuring spoon. Is a pinch of salt more or less than this spoon size?
STEMSpark Stumper
Most of the measurements here have dealt with measuring volume. Can you think of a standard unit of measure for length or weight?