Meters, Liters and Grams Oh My! The Metric System Meters, Liters and Grams Oh My!

The Metric System The metric system is a measurement system based on our decimal (base 10) number system. Other countries and all scientists and engineers use the metric system for measurement. Other countries’ companies are refusing to buy products from the U.S. if not labeled in metric units Scientists need a universal way to communicate data (SI Units)

What does the metric system measure? The gram measures mass or how much something weighs The liter measures volume which is used when measuring liquids The meter measures the length of an object or the distance from place to place

Review of Scientific Terms Mass - a fundamental measure of the amount of matter in the object Matter – anything that has mass and takes up space Volume – the amount of space an object takes up or contains Measured by L*W*H or using the displacement method Length - Extent or distance from beginning to end Density - The mass of a substance per unit volume, D=M/V

Metric Prefixes Metric Units The metric system has prefix modifiers that are multiples of 10. Prefix Symbol Factor Number Factor Word Kilo- k 1000 Thousand Hecto- h 100 Hundred Deca- da or dk 10 Ten Unit m, l, or g 1 One Deci- d .1 Tenth Centi- c .01 Hundredth Milli- m .001 thousandth

Place Values of Metric Prefixes Thousand Hundred Ten One Tenth Hundredth Thousandth km kg kL hm hg hL dkm dkg dkL m g L dm dg dL cm cg cL mm mg mL

Meters Meters measure length or distance One millimeter is about the thickness of a dime.

Meters One centimeter is about the width of a large paper clip or your fingernail.

Meters A meter is about the width of a doorway

Meters A kilometer is about six city blocks or 10 football fields. 1.6 kilometers is about 1 mile

Gram Grams are used to measure mass or the weight of an object. Mass is a measurement of the amount of matter something contains, while Weight is the measurement of the pull of gravity on an object.

Grams A milligram weighs about as much as a grain of salt.

Grams 1 gram weighs about as much as a small paper clip. 1 kilogram weighs about as much as 6 apples or 2 pounds.

2 Liter Soda Liters Liters measure capacity or volume. Volume refers to the space taken up by an object itself, while capacity refers to the amount of a liquid or other pourable substance a container can (or does) hold. 2 Liter Soda

Liter 1 milliliter is about the amount of one drop

Liter 1 liter is half of a 2 liter bottle of Coke or other soda

Liter A kiloliter would be about 500 2-liter bottles of pop

What unit would you use to measure each of the following items?

Which unit would you use to measure the length of this bicycle? km m cm mm

Which unit would you use to measure the mass of a penny? km g cL mg

Which unit would you use to measure the water in an aquarium? L m cL mg

To change from a larger unit to a smaller unit, you need to multiply. 1 km x 1000 = 1000 m 1 m x 100 = 100 cm 1 cm x 10 = 10mm

Place Values of Metric Prefixes Move the decimal point to the right to multiply. Thousand Hundred Ten One Tenth Hundredth Thousandth km kL kg hm hL hg dkm dkL dkg m L g dm dL dg cm cL cg mm mL mg

Place Values of Metric Prefixes Thousand Hundred Ten One Tenth Hundredth Thousandth km kg kL hm hg hL dkm dkg dkL m g L dm dg dL cm cg cL mm mg mL

To change from smaller units to larger units you divide by a power of ten. 1000mm ÷ 10 = 100cm 100cm ÷ 10 = 10dm 10dm ÷ 10 = 1m

Place Values of Metric Prefixes Move the decimal point to the left to divide. Thousand Hundred Ten One Tenth Hundredth Thousandth km kL kg hm hL hg dkm dkL dkg m L g dm dL dg cm cL cg mm mL mg

Metric Conversions Using Factor-Label Method 1 Dozen eggs = 12 eggs 12 inches = 1 foot 60 seconds = 1 minute 16 ounces = 1 pound Factor Label Method: A way to convert a ratio of equivalent values to express the same quantity in different units. Given Units Units to Get to Examples: Units to Cancel 24 inches = ____?____ feet 24 inches 1 feet = 2 feet Equivalent Ratio 12 inches

Rules

Example A rattlesnake is 2.44 m long. How long is the snake in cm? 2.44 m x 100 cm = 244 cm 1 m

Conversion Practice Try these conversions using Factor Labeling Method. Show your work. 1000 mg = _______ g 1 L = _______ mL 160 cm = _______ mm 14 km = _______ m 109 g = _______ kg 250 m = _______ km Compare using <, >, or =. 56 cm 6 m 7 g 698 mg

Metric Conversion Challenge (Homework!) Write the correct abbreviation for each metric unit. 1) Kilogram _____ 4) Milliliter _____ 7) Kilometer _____ 2) Meter _____ 5) Millimeter _____ 8) Centimeter _____ 3) Gram _____ 6) Liter _____ 9) Milligram _____ Try these conversions, using the ladder method. 10) 2000 mg = _______ g 15) 5 L = _______ mL 20) 16 cm = _______ mm 11) 104 km = _______ m 16) 198 g = _______ kg 21) 2500 m = _______ km 12) 480 cm = _____ m 17) 75 mL = _____ L 22) 65 g = _____ mg 13) 5.6 kg = _____ g 18) 50 cm = _____ m 23) 6.3 cm = _____ mm 14) 8 mm = _____ cm 19) 5.6 m = _____ cm 24) 120 mg = _____ g