The 3 Critical Skills Of Teaching First Grade Measurement

Getting ready for your measurement unit? Wondering how to make it fun and hands-on without spending huge amounts of time gathering materials and “just right” measuring resources? And . . . how do you know for sure that you’ve taught all the measurement standards your students will need to be successful?

I love teaching measurement to our youngest students. It’s so hands-on and, well, that just makes it more fun. Student explorations quickly lead to many “Aha!” moments of discovery. One of my favorite parts of teaching math!

📌 Pin this post to come back to during your measurement unit

But, measurement in first grade can’t be just explorations. Students need a clear, scaffolded approach so real understanding develops over time.

Some third and fourth graders still miss the basic understandings. They often don’t have the understanding of measuring space and not just counting the lines on a ruler. That’s why using non-standard measurements is so important.

I always find some students that place the item they are measuring at the 1 on the ruler. Not all the way to the end. Ugh! Understanding that you start at 0 is not an easy concept. 

Making sure your students have many experiences measuring with non-standard units is extremely important. Those experiences will help students understand the measurement of space. They will anchor the thinking behind beginning the measurement of an object at zero.

Some assessments will use a “broken ruler”. Have you seen this? The picture of the ruler for students to use may have the first visible number as a 3, 5, or another number. It seems a little baffling. The purpose is to assess which students have a deep understanding of measurement. And, to see who can think beyond the given visual number and into the meaning of measurement.

By teaching non-standard measurement skills to our younger students, we instill the concepts of measurement needed to be successful as they become more skilled and able to understand more complex measurements.

• ESTABLISH MEASUREMENT CONCEPTS

By measuring with color tiles, blocks, teddy bear counters, and other manipulatives, students are placing the units as they measure and do not count “1” until the unit that occupies the space is placed – Perfect for developing understanding!

• ESTABLISH REFERENCE POINTS

Finding real objects they are familiar with that match given lengths helps students establish reference points. These reference points become very important later when students have to answer such questions as, “About how long is a ________?”  Because I don’t always recognize my first graders’ drawn pictures, I ask them to label them. 🙂

• BUILD COMPARING SKILLS

Comparing is another critical skill. This is a real-life application of the greater than and less than number skills we work on and spiral through our curriculum.

When you start working on these skills together, that’s when measurement really begins to click for your students.

💡 This is usually the point where planning starts to feel like a lot.

Once you start working on measurement, it usually turns into more than just one lesson.
You’re pulling small groups, setting up centers, and trying to keep practice consistent across the week.

That’s the part that can get overwhelming.

This is where having a complete, structured unit makes all the difference.
Instead of piecing activities together, you have a clear path that builds understanding step-by-step.

✨ I’ve created a full set you can use right away. This is what I use to keep things running smoothly without having to plan each piece separately. 🙂

Everything is already laid out for you:

• A clear progression from hands-on exploration to deeper understanding
• No-prep pages that reinforce each skill
• A game and math center to keep students engaged while practicing
• Coverage of all first grade measurement standards

👉 Take a closer look at the full unit and how it supports your measurement lessons.

Here’s a sample of one of the measurement games included: ⬇️

The full unit includes this game plus everything needed to teach your entire measurement unit.

💡 When students respond well to this structure, having more of the same type of practice ready makes it much easier to keep things going without planning each next step.

👉 See exactly what’s included and how it works.

If you’re in the middle of your measurement unit, having something ready to go can make the whole week feel a lot more manageable.

And as always,