How Big is a Foot?
Posted by Ariana Waugh
Title: How
Big is a Foot?
Author and Illustrator: Rolf Myller
Recommended Grade Levels: 3-5
Common Core Standards Addressed:
Measure
the length of an object by selecting and using appropriate tools such as
rulers, yardsticks, meter sticks, and measuring tapes.
Estimate
lengths using units of inches, feet, centimeters, and meters.
Summary:
The story is about
a King and a Queen who have almost everything in the world, but the King wants
to make his wife a bed since she does not have one. The kingdom needs to find out exactly how big
to make the bed, but do not know where to start since beds have not been
invented yet. It is a cute take on how the first non-metric standard form of
measurement was created.
Rating: 5 stars
This book teaches students the basic introduction of measurement and
why it is crucial for standard units of measurement throughout the world. The
storyline has good moments to stop and think with the students and see if they
can make predictions about what they think is going to happen with the bed.
Classroom Ideas:
I think that this would be a good introduction to a unit
about measurement. The teacher can start by reading the books and have the
students “turn and talk” about why they think that the Queen did not fit into
the bed. A fun activity would be to have each student trace their own foot and
use it to measure things around the room. We could then compare answers and
have a discussion about why having a standard form of measurement is important.
Hi Ariana,
ReplyDeleteI didn’t get to hear your book reading when we shared with the class however I thought this book was an awesome way to teach students about measurement. I like the concept of having the students measure their feet and comparing with their peers as well as comparing to items in the classroom. I further researched this book and read what others had to say…seems like it’s a 5 star rating indeed. Thanks for sharing, I may just use this lesson activity with my own students one day. :)
Hey Ariana!
ReplyDeleteI never read this book but it seems like a really great book for children and like you said, for a good introduction to a unit on measurement. I think your idea about having children trace their own feet and then use it to measure things around the classroom sounds very engaging and honestly... like a lot of fun!! I agree with Liz, I might have to use this book and foot tracing idea with my future students! :)
I think this book could be used several times and as you noted appropriate for 3-5. I like how you suggest using their own foot to measure objects and then compare that. The answers will vary and you can introduce the concept of standard form and why its needed. I would then have the students remeasure everything using a ruler or tape measure and see the difference between the two measurements. This will give clarity to why we need a standard form and a good introduction into other standard measurements. Great book and ideas.
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