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Activity 1

Standards Alignment

Building On

Addressing

Building Toward

Instructional Routines

None

Materials

To Gather

Objects of various lengths

Activity Narrative

The purpose of this activity is for students to practice the skill of estimating a reasonable length in centimeters based on their experiences and known information. When students compare and explain their estimates in pairs and during class discussion they make, interpret, and defend mathematical claims (MP3).

This activity uses the Estimation Exploration routine in the Launch. This gives students the opportunity to revisit the meaning of estimation before making estimations on their own. The Launch can be completed with the images provided or with an object that is more interesting to your students.

If needed, review all the objects that students will estimate as a class and record the names of each object (or length) so that all students can see.

Launch

Groups of 2
Give objects to each group.
Display the image or a real notebook.
“Andre wanted to measure the length of his notebook, but he didn’t have any tools to measure it. He made a guess that he thought would be close.”
“Look at the notebook and think about how long you think it is in centimeters.”
“What is an estimate that’s too high? Too low? About right?”
1 minute: quiet think time
1 minute: partner discussion
Record responses.
“Let’s look at another image of the object.”
Display the image or hold a folder next to a 10-centimeter tool.
“Based on the second image, do you want to revise, or change, your estimates?”
1 minute: quiet think time
1 minute: partner discussion
Record responses.
“How did your estimation change?”
30 seconds: quiet think time
Share responses.

Activity

As needed, display the names of the objects that students will estimate.
“Now look at the objects I gave each group and think about how long they are. Record your estimates on the recording sheet on your own.”
“When you and your partner finish, compare your estimates and explain why you think they are ‘about right’.”
5 minutes: independent work time
2 minutes: partner discussion

Record an estimate that is:

too low about right too high
Record an estimate that is:

too low about right too high
Record an estimate for each object.
Tell your partner why your estimates are “about right.”

Recording Sheet

object	estimate	measurement




Choose an object:

Student Response

to access Student Response.

Advancing Student Thinking

If students make estimates without justifying their thinking, consider asking:

“Tell me more about how you decided that the object was about ___ cm.”
“What objects can you think of that are about 1 cm? 10 cm? How could the lengths of objects that you know help you explain the estimated length of another object?”

Activity Synthesis

Share and record estimates for each of the classroom objects.
“How did you make your estimates? What did you think about?” (I thought about the size of a 10-centimeter tool and imagined measuring with it. I thought about the length of the ruler we made.)
30 seconds: quiet think time
1 minute: partner discussion
Share responses.
“Can you think of a time when you might need to estimate the length of an object?”

Activity 2

Standards Alignment

Building On

Addressing

Building Toward

Instructional Routines

None

Materials

To Gather

Materials from a previous activity Rulers (centimeters)

Activity Narrative

The purpose of this activity is for students to measure the lengths they estimated in the previous activity with a centimeter ruler to find the actual lengths. As needed, encourage students to use base-ten blocks to check their measurements to help them assess their accuracy and deepen their understanding of how length is represented on the ruler (MP2, MP6).

MLR2 Collect and Display. Collect the language students use to explain how they are measuring. Display words and phrases such as: “ruler,” “edge,” “measure,” “length,” “centimeter,” “estimate,” “longer,” and “shorter.” During the Synthesis, invite students to suggest ways to update the display: “What are some other words or phrases we should include?” Invite students to borrow language from the display as needed.
Advances: Conversing, Reading

Action and Expression: Internalize Executive Functions. Invite students to verbalize their strategy for determining how to line up their measuring tool before they begin. The base-ten blocks and handmade rulers need to be lined up with the edge because that indicates where zero is, and the actual ruler needs to be lined up with the tick mark indicating where zero is. Students can speak quietly to themselves, or share with a partner.
Supports accessibility for: Organization, Conceptual Processing, Language

Launch

Groups of 2
Give students centimeter rulers and access to base-ten blocks.
“What do you notice about this ruler? How is it the same and different from the rulers you created?”
30 seconds: quiet think time
Share responses.
Depending on your rulers, say one of the following:
- “Look at the edge of your ruler. Our rulers have 0 labeled, but they have some space before the 0. Our measurements won’t be accurate if we start at the edge of the ruler instead of 0. So, we need to line up our objects with the 0, not the edge of our ruler.”
- “Look at the edge of your ruler. It looks like our rulers start at 1, because that is the first number. There is some space before the 1. This space is 1 centimeter long. The edge of our ruler is 0, but there was no room to label it. So, in order to measure accurately, we must line up our objects with the edge of the ruler, so we are beginning at 0.”

Activity

“Now we will use our rulers to measure the objects to find their actual length.”
10 minutes: partner work time
Monitor for a few students to share their chosen object in the Synthesis.

Measure each object on your recording sheet. Record each length in centimeters.
Compare the measurements to your estimates.

Student Response

to access Student Response.

Activity Synthesis

Invite previously identified students to share the chosen object.
“What is an estimate for the ____ that is about right? Explain.”
1 min: quiet think time
Share and record responses.
Ask the student to demonstrate how they used the ruler to find the actual measurement, or, if possible, ask all students to find and share the actual measurement.
Repeat with other objects, if time permits.

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Lesson 4

Measure and Estimate in Centimeters

Warm-up

Instructional Routines

Materials

Activity Narrative

Launch

Activity

Student Response

Advancing Student Thinking

Activity Synthesis

Activity 1

Standards Alignment

Building On

Addressing

2.MD.A.3

Building Toward

Instructional Routines

Materials

To Gather

Activity Narrative

Launch

Activity

Student Response

Advancing Student Thinking

Activity Synthesis

Activity 2

Standards Alignment

Building On

Addressing

2.MD.A.1

2.MD.A.3

Building Toward

Instructional Routines

Materials

To Gather

Activity Narrative

Launch

Activity

Student Response

Activity Synthesis

Lesson Synthesis

Standards Alignment

Building On

Addressing

Building Toward

2.MD.A.1

Advancing Student Thinking