Measuring Length and Organizing Data
Aligned to 1.MD.A.1 — Common Core State Standards for Mathematics.

What this lesson teaches
You can measure how long something is by lining up same-size objects, like paper clips, end to end with no gaps. The number of paper clips tells you the length. You can also collect things into groups and make a simple chart to show how many are in each group.
Worked examples
Example 1
Lay paper clips along a marker. If 4 paper clips fit exactly end to end, the marker is 4 paper clips long.
Example 2
Measure the same marker with pennies instead of paper clips. Pennies are shorter, so it takes more of them — maybe 7 pennies for the same marker.
Example 3
If you leave gaps between the paper clips, you will count too few. The clips must touch end to end for the measurement to be right.
Practice questions
- Measure your book using paper clips.
- Why must the paper clips have no gaps between them?
- Make a tally chart of how many red and blue crayons you have.
Watch the lesson
Every lesson comes with a video taught in English and Spanish — the same video the QR code in the printed workbook opens.
▶ Watch this lessonEn español
Medición de longitud y organización de datos
Puedes medir qué tan largo es algo colocando objetos del mismo tamaño, como clips, uno tras otro sin dejar espacios. El número de clips te indica la longitud. También puedes agrupar cosas y hacer una tabla sencilla para mostrar cuántas hay en cada grupo.
Ejemplo 1: Coloca clips a lo largo de un marcador. Si caben exactamente 4 clips de extremo a extremo, el marcador mide 4 clips de largo.
Ejemplo 2: Mide el mismo marcador con monedas de un centavo en vez de clips. Las monedas son más cortas, así que se necesitan más — tal vez 7 monedas para el mismo marcador.
Ejemplo 3: Si dejas huecos entre los clips, vas a contar de menos. Los clips deben tocarse de punta a punta para que la medida esté bien.
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