The cost of various measurement tools, including scales and thermometers is $230, including shipping and <a target="new" href="http://www.donorschoose.org/html/fulfillment.htm" onclick="g_openWindow('http://www.donorschoose.org/html/fulfillment.htm', 300, 800, 'fulfillwindow');return false;">fulfillment</a>.
I was surprised that many of my third grade students thought a banana should be measured in feet. Some thought a mile was the distance to the cafeteria. I think if they had more hands-on tools, they would be able to grasp the concepts of measuring more easily. The earlier they use measuring tools, the better! They were engaged when they were able to use my kitchen scale. I purchased a large thermometer for the class. But this isn't enough for a whole class.
When you ask an 8-year old to memorize measuring facts without the use of measuring tools, s/he cannot fully understand the units of measurement (inch, ounce, pint, etc.). As reflected in my examples above, measurement units can be hard to grasp for some students. To be able to use "grown-up" or real-life measuring tools makes them more excited and gives them practical use. How much better it would be to learn about a pound or ounce by holding an object and then weighing it on a scale instead of looking at pictures in a book to see which would be weighed in ounces or in pounds.
Since measuring tools are applicable to everyday life and important for science and math, I would like to purchase scales, thermometers, and other available measuring tools. Measurement is so basic to our everyday life, we forget what it's like for some children. If a household doesn't use some of these tools, then there is little opportunity to practice with them. We need both customary and metric tools. Centimeter cubes are multipurpose: they weigh a gram, are one centimeter on each side, and show the volume of one cubic centimeter. There are some fun measurement games, too.
I'd like to purchase trundle wheels that measure long outside distances. As you roll the wheel with a 3-foot circumference, a clicking noise is made each time it rolls three feet. Because we try to encourage exercise, it would be helpful and educational to measure the play yard with a measuring wheel (a tool that could be used by city planners).
It would be wonderful to have some of these tools for these third-graders.
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As a teacher-founded nonprofit, we're trusted by thousands of teachers and supporters across the country. This classroom request for funding was created by Ms. Walsh and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.