How big is that carrot? Why one hand span, of course. As an exercise in measurement, individuals trace their hand in their science journal and search the school garden for one object the same size as the span between their thumb and little finger. They then select one object the same size as their span, create an illustration of the object next to their tracing, and label the size of the object.

Concepts

measurement, units of measurement

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Additional Tags

science

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Instructional Ideas

• After completing the first round of the activity, have individuals locate larger objects to measure with hand spans or other body parts

Pros

• The activity illustrates that anything can be used as a measurement tool

Cons

• None