1. Measuring Length, Mass, and Time Using the Metric System

2. Length tool = metric ruler or meter stick Variable = length
unit = meters (m)

3. Pro-Tips
place object you are measuring at the ZERO (0) on the ruler NO
YES

4. NO YES 2. measure along a straight line
Why is it important to make sure the ruler is straight when measuring?
YES NO

5. now let’s read the metric ruler
each NUMBER on a metric ruler represents a centimeter.
each DASH on a metric ruler represents a millimeter.
there are 27
centimeters in this
measurement
4. then there are 9
DASHes past that #
5. so we write that as 27.9 cm

6. Mass
tool = electric
balance
Variable = mass
unit = grams (g)

7. Pro-Tips
Ensure the unit is correct before using g

8. now let’s read the balance
Step 1 – place mass boat on balance
Step 2 – zero out the balance
mass boat
YES NO
2.6 g
0.0 g

9. step 3 – place item in the mass boat step 4 – read the mass ** note
mass is the amount of space something takes up
weight is the measure of gravity on an object.
Therefore MASS & WEIGHT are NOT the same thing!
13.5 g

10. Time
tool = stopwatch
Variable = time
unit = seconds (s)

11. Pro Tips milliseconds Hour Minute seconds
our stop watches display hours, minutes, second, and milliseconds
your data should always be in seconds (s)
Hour
Minute
seconds
milliseconds

12. now let’s read the stop watch #1
this time needs to be converted into seconds.
this reads 2 minutes, 49 seconds, and 65 milliseconds
there are 60 seconds in 1 minute
60 X 2 = 120 seconds
+ 49 seconds
169 seconds
the milliseconds go after the decimal s

13. _____________ . __________ total # of seconds # of milliseconds#2
_______ hours X 60 minutes = ___________minutes X 60 seconds
= ____________ (this # tells us how many seconds were in that hours on the stopwatch)
______ minutes X 60 seconds = ________ (this # tells us how many seconds were in the minutes on the stopwatch)
__________ seconds
_________ milliseconds
Now add up all your second values (there are 3)
_________ + ________ + ______ = __________ (this is the total # of seconds)
_____________ . __________
total # of seconds # of milliseconds