How to Use the Metric System for the Fifth Grade

Including the metric system in the everyday activities in your fifth-grade classroom, plus adding a few fun activities, makes learning it much easier. Teaching the metric system gives your students an edge beyond your classroom as well. Once students get over their reluctance to learn a new concept, the metric system can become fun.

Instructions

1

Organize a metric scavenger hunt for your students. Make cards that ask students to find objects based on their metric measurements. For instance, Find something that is 1 meter long." Divide the students into two groups and give each a stack of cards, letting them race to finish their scavenger hunt first.

2

Immerse your classroom in the metric system. Do not allow nonmetric measurements during class time. This will help students get used to the metric system and force them to learn to think of measurements in this way.

3

Ask students to list measurements they use in their daily life. Some ideas are the amount of milk they put into their cereal, the distance they run during sports practice or the speed their parents drive them to school everyday. Ask students to figure out the metric equivalent of their daily measurements.