Reading Scaled Instruments: a week of ready-to-teach maths

Five days of lessons for Year 4 Measurement. Print this pack and the week is prepared: each day has a one-page plan and a student worksheet, plus cut-out reading cards, clock cards and display cards, a mini-check and every answer.

Start here: five minutes to Monday

1. Skim the week at a glance on the next page.
2. Print the five days. Each day is two A4 sheets: a plan and a worksheet.
3. Cut out the two card sheets once; the cards are reused across the week.
4. Open the free interactive unit on your board. Every plan tells you which picture to show and which buttons to press.
5. Teach straight from the plan. Timings, talk prompts, misconceptions and answers are all on the one page.

No maths background needed

This pack is written for the busy generalist teacher. Each plan explains the idea in plain words, lists the misconceptions children bring, and gives the answers. The big idea of the week is one question asked before every reading: what is one small mark worth? Take the gap between two numbered marks and share it among the spaces. With that, a ruler, a scale, a jug, a thermometer and a clock are all read the same way.

One day, one lesson

The five lessons fill a week of maths, one lesson of about 50 minutes a day. Run them in order: each day stands on the one before. Every plan marks a split point if your timetable runs two shorter sessions.

Spaces, not marks

Count the spaces between two numbered marks, not the small marks. Four small marks between 0 and 10 make five spaces, so each mark is worth 2. Counting marks instead of spaces is the most common slip all week, and the plans come back to it each day.

The week at a glance

One lesson a day for a week. Each day stands on the day before, so run them in order.

How the week builds

Day 1 is the key skill, working out a small mark, on every kind of scale. Days 2 and 3 use it for length and mass, then capacity and temperature, including readings that fall between marks. Day 4 treats a clock as a scale too, and Day 5 moves to digital displays, where the decimal point and the colon still have to be read. It builds on tenths and hundredths (AC9M4N01).

Materials for the week (one trip)

• From the classroom: rulers, a measuring tape, a kitchen scale, a measuring jug, a thermometer and an analogue clock, as many as you have.
• Optional: a stopwatch or tablet timer, and empty packets that show a mass or a capacity.
• Cut out once, use all week: the reading cards, clock cards and display cards in this pack.

Words for the word wall

scale, mark, numbered mark, space, worth, between, halfway, ruler, tape, kitchen scale, jug, thermometer, degree, duration, display, decimal point, colon

Dear families

This week in maths, Year 4 learns to read measuring instruments: rulers, kitchen scales, jugs, thermometers, clocks and digital displays. The trick is to work out what one small mark is worth before reading.

Try this at home

• Look at a measuring jug together. What is each small mark worth? Pour some water and read it.
• Read the kitchen scale with a bag of fruit. Is it more or less than 1 kg?
• Time a job, such as tidying a room, on a clock with hands. How many minutes did it take?
• Find a digital display, such as a microwave or oven timer. What does 02:30 mean?

My readings this week

Fill one row a day. Write what you measured, the instrument, and the reading with its unit.

Printed from the free seegongsik Reading Scaled Instruments teaching pack · seegongsik.com/au/y4/measurement/AC9M4M01/pack

What is each mark worth?

Before reading any scale, children ask what one small mark is worth. They find the gap between two numbered marks and share it among the spaces: numbered every 10 with four small marks between is five spaces, so each mark is worth 2. Then an arrow is read by counting on from the numbered mark just before it.

We are learning to

• find the gap between two numbered marks,
• count the spaces between them (one more than the small marks),
• share the gap among the spaces to find what each mark is worth.

Success criteria

• I can work out what one small mark is worth on any scale.
• I can read an arrow by counting on from a numbered mark.

You need

Rulers, a jug and a thermometer to pass around. The reading cards (cut-out sheet 1), one set per pair. The worksheet, one per child.

Lesson flow (about 50 minutes)

Two half-sessions instead? Split after the first two scales of Part A; start Session B with the kitchen scale.

Watch for these ideas

• Counting the small marks instead of the spaces: four marks make five spaces.
• Assuming every small mark is worth 1. On the jug it is worth 50.
• Counting on from the wrong numbered mark. Start from the number just before the arrow.

Answers

• Part A: 1: 4 marks make 5 spaces, each 1 cm, arrow 7 cm; 2: 1 marks make 2 spaces, each 50 mL, arrow 150 mL; 3: 3 marks make 4 spaces, each 250 g, arrow 1250 g; 4: 4 marks make 5 spaces, each 2 °C, arrow 26 °C.
• Part B: the missing numbers are 20 and 40; each small mark is 5 m; the arrow shows 35 m. Reading cards: A 4 cm, B 150 mL, C 8 °C, D 600 g, E 22 °C, F 11 cm, G 450 mL, H 150 g, I 35 °C.

What is each mark worth?

A. Work out each small mark, then read the arrow

B. Only the ends are numbered. Write in the missing numbers, then read the arrow.

C. How did you work out the missing numbers?

Length and mass

Children read rulers and a tape in centimetres, including a length past one metre, and read and set a kitchen scale whose small marks are worth 50 g. Then they compare two readings and say how much longer or heavier one is. 130 cm is 1 m and 30 cm: a part of a metre written in the smaller unit.

We are learning to

• read a length on a ruler and a tape, including past 1 m,
• read and set a value on a scale marked in 50 g,
• compare two measurements in the same unit and find the difference.

Success criteria

• I can read a ruler, a tape and a kitchen scale.
• I can change kilograms to grams before comparing.

You need

Rulers, a measuring tape, a kitchen scale and a few things to weigh. The reading cards (cut-out sheet 1). The worksheet, one per child.

Lesson flow (about 50 minutes)

Two half-sessions instead? Split after Part A; start Session B with the kitchen scale.

Watch for these ideas

• Starting at the end of the ruler instead of at 0, so every length is a little too long.
• Reading 130 cm as 13 cm, or writing 1 m 30 cm as 1.30 cm.
• Counting the starting mark as a step, so 250 g to 350 g looks like three marks.

Answers

• Part A: 13 cm and 18 cm; the tape shows 130 cm, which is 1 m 30 cm. Part B: the scale reads 700 g; 350 g is 2 small marks past 250 g, and 850 g is 2 small marks past 750 g.
• Part C: 1 kg is 1000 g, so the potatoes are heavier by 250 g.

Length and mass

A. Read each length

B. The kitchen scale: read the first, then draw an arrow on the others

C. The apples weigh 750 g. The potatoes weigh 1 kg. Which is heavier, and by how much?

Capacity and temperature

Jugs and thermometers are scales stood on end. Children read the level of water in a jug and the top of the liquid in a thermometer, working out the small marks first. Some levels fall between two marks: halfway between 30 and 32 degrees is 31. Then they find how much warmer one temperature is than another.

We are learning to

• read the level on a jug in millilitres and a thermometer in degrees,
• judge a reading that falls between two marks,
• find the difference between two readings.

Success criteria

• I can read a jug and a thermometer, including a level between two marks.
• I can say how much more or how much warmer, with the unit.

You need

A measuring jug and water, and a thermometer if you have one. The reading cards (cut-out sheet 1). The worksheet, one per child.

Lesson flow (about 50 minutes)

Two half-sessions instead? Split after Part A; start Session B with the thermometers.

Watch for these ideas

• Reading the jug from above, so the level looks higher than it is.
• Taking the nearest mark instead of judging between: 31 read as 30 or 32.
• Finding a difference by adding the two temperatures.

Answers

• Part A: the jugs show 250 mL and 350 mL (each small mark is 50 mL); the last jug is coloured up to the 400 mL numbered mark.
• Part B: the thermometers show 18 °C and 31 °C (31 is halfway between 30 and 32); the coloured one stops at 24 °C. Part C: 26 − 12 = 14 degrees warmer.

Capacity and temperature

A. Jugs: read two, then colour the last one to 400 mL

B. Thermometers: read two, then colour the last one to 24 °C

C. The morning was 12 °C. The afternoon was 26 °C. How much warmer was the afternoon?

How long did it take?

A clock is a scaled instrument: the numbers come every five minutes and the small marks between them are single minutes. To time a task, children start where the minute hand began and count round to where it ended, in jumps of five while they can, then single minutes. 11:10 to 11:48 is seven fives and three ones: 38 minutes.

We are learning to

• read the start and end times on a clock face,
• count the minutes between them in fives and ones,
• show the end time for a task of a given length.

Success criteria

• I can find how many minutes a task took from two clock times.
• I can draw the hands to show when a task ends.

You need

A geared demonstration clock or a paper clock. The clock cards (cut-out sheet 2), one set per pair. The worksheet, one per child.

Lesson flow (about 50 minutes)

Two half-sessions instead? Split after the first two tasks of Part A; start Session B with the library visit.

Watch for these ideas

• Giving the end time as the duration: 48 minutes for 11:10 to 11:48.
• Counting the numbers passed as single minutes: 7 numbers is 35 minutes, not 7.
• Counting the starting mark as a minute, so every answer is one too many.

Answers

• Part A: 9:05 to 9:20 is 3 fives and 0 ones, 15 minutes; 11:10 to 11:48 is 7 fives and 3 ones, 38 minutes; 2:25 to 2:51 is 5 fives and 1 ones, 26 minutes; 3:40 to 3:58 is 3 fives and 3 ones, 18 minutes.
• Part B: lunch ends at 12:50, with the minute hand on the 10 and the hour hand just before the 1. Part C: Tom gave the end time; it took 38 minutes. Clock cards: 1 took 25 minutes, 2 took 24 minutes, 3 took 17 minutes, 4 took 20 minutes.

How long did it take?

A. Write when each task started and ended. How long did it take?

C. Tom says the science test took 48 minutes. What did he do? How long did it take?

Digital displays

A display gives the number, but children still have to read it. The decimal point splits whole units from tenths: 2.5 kg is 2 kg 500 g. The colon on a timer splits minutes from seconds: 02:15 is 2 minutes 15 seconds, not 215 seconds. Then children choose the instrument and unit for a measuring job.

We are learning to

• read the decimal point on a scale, jug or thermometer display,
• read the colon on a timer or stopwatch,
• choose a sensible instrument and unit for a measuring job.

Success criteria

• I can say what a digital reading means in words.
• I can choose an instrument and a unit, and say why they suit the job.

You need

The display and meaning cards (cut-out sheet 2), one set per pair. A stopwatch or tablet timer. The worksheet, one per child.

Lesson flow (about 50 minutes)

Two half-sessions instead? Split after the card match; start Session B with Part B.

Watch for these ideas

• Reading the colon as a decimal point: 01:30 is not 1.3 minutes.
• Reading 2.5 kg as 2 kg 5 g. The 5 is five tenths of a kilogram, 500 g.
• Choosing a unit far too small or too large, such as the classroom in millimetres.

Answers

• Part A: 02:15 is 2 minutes and 15 seconds; 2.5 kg is 2 kg and 500 g, two and a half kilograms; 0.5 L is half a litre, 500 mL; 38.2 °C is just over 38 degrees, 2 tenths more; 10:00 is 10 minutes exactly. Cards: 01:30 = 1 minute 30 seconds; 1.5 kg = 1 kg 500 g; 36.8 °C = just under 37 degrees; 04:45 = 4 minutes 45 seconds; 0.5 L = 500 mL; 2.25 m = 2 m 25 cm.
• Part B: a tape measure or trundle wheel (m); a kitchen scale (kg or g); a measuring jug, filled again and again (L); a thermometer (°C); a stopwatch (s or min). Part C: yes: halfway between 1 kg and 2 kg is 1.5 kg, or 1 kg 500 g.

Digital displays

A. What does each display mean? Write it in words.

B. Which instrument and which unit would you use?

C. A dial scale points halfway between 1 kg and 2 kg. A digital scale shows 1.5 kg. Do they agree? Explain.

Reading cards

Cut out the nine cards, one set per pair. One partner reads the card aloud with its unit; the other checks by working out what each small mark is worth.

Teacher note: the readings are in the Day 1 answers.

Clock cards and display cards

Cut out the four clock cards (Day 4) and the six display cards with their six meaning cards (Day 5). On a clock card, find how long it took from start to end. Match each display to the card that says what it means.

Clock cards

Display cards

Meaning cards

Teacher note: the clock card times and the display meanings are in the Day 4 and Day 5 answers.

What we know: Reading Scaled Instruments

1. A ruler is numbered every 10 cm with four small marks between. Each small mark is worth ______
2. Read the ruler: ______
3. Read the jug and the thermometer:

   ______ mL

   ______ °C
4. Draw an arrow at 650 g:
5. Start End It took ______ minutes
6. A timer shows 03:20. What does it mean? ______________________________
7. Which is longer, 1.5 m or 140 cm? By how much? ______________________________

Answers and marking guide

Answers

1. 2 cm (four marks make five spaces, and 10 ÷ 5 = 2).
2. 14 cm.
3. 450 mL and 21 °C (21 is halfway between the 20 and 22 marks).
4. The arrow is 3 small marks past 500 g.
5. 10:15 to 10:42: 27 minutes.
6. 3 minutes and 20 seconds.
7. 1.5 m is 150 cm, so it is longer by 10 cm.

A quick three-level guide

Seven questions, three ideas. A child at standard works out what a small mark is worth before reading, times a duration in fives and ones, and says what a display means in words.

Weekly class record

Jot a tick as you move around the room; the mini-check fills any gaps. A tick a day is plenty.

The five columns are the five days: each mark, length and mass, capacity and temperature, duration, and displays.