Name___________________Date______Period___
Measurement Conversion – Customary System
There are two measurement systems, the customary system and the metric system. In the United
States, we use the customary system. In most of the rest of the world, the metric system is used.
LENGTH/DISTANCE:
Inch (measure with a ruler)
1 Foot= 12 inches
1 Yard= 3 feet or 36 inches
1 Mile= 5,280 feet or 1,760 yards
Width of thumb
From shoulder to elbow/ruler length
Adult baseball bat length or width of classroom door/ also nose to tip of finger
4 laps around track/length of 18 football fields
WEIGHT (the measure of gravitational force on an object) :
Ounce
1 Pound = 16 ounces (16 oz.)
1 Ton= 2,000 pounds
Slice of bread
Loaf of bread
Small car
CAPACITY (the amount of liquid something holds)- *(See “Land of the Gallon” story on back):
Fluid ounce
1 Cup= 8 fluid ounces
1 Pint= 2 cups
1 Quart= 4 cups/2 pints
1 Gallon= 4 quarts/8 pints/16 cups/128 ounces
Spoonful
Glass of juice
Small bottle salad dressing
Small paint container
Large container of milk
You can convert measurements by using proportions and cross multiplying to solve for the unknown!
Always write a WORD RATIO to guide you!
Ex 1: How many pounds are in 32 oz? The word ratio can either be _________to___________ or
_________to___________. Since we are in the habit of writing SMALL on top and BIG on bottom, let’s choose ounces
to pounds:
16 ounces = 32 ounces
1 pound
X pounds
Cross Multiply: 16X = 32; now divide both sides by 16 (to get “X” by itself)
Cross Multiply:
= 32; now divide both sides by 16 (to get “X” by itself)
16 16X 16
16
16
X =there
2 pounds
X = so
2, so
are 2 pounds in 32 ounces.
X = 2, so there are 2 pounds in 32 ounces.
Ex 2: Nancy ran 8 miles. How many yards did she run? The word ratio is _______________ to ____________.
1,760 yards = __y__
1 mile
8 miles
Cross Multiply: Y = _______ yards; no need to divide by 1, so she ran _______ yards when she ran 8 miles.
X = 2, so there are 2 pounds in 32 ounces.
Ex 3: A book weighs 60 ounces. How many pounds is this? The word ratio is __________ to ____________.
16 ounces = 60 ounces
1 pound
X pounds
Cross Multiply: 16X = 60; divide both sides by 16 (to get “X” by itself); X = 60/16 = 3.75 pounds
The Royal Land of Gallon
In the royal Land of Gallon (capital G), there were four giant Queens (Q-quarts).
Each Queen had a Princess and a Prince (P and P – 2 pints).
Each Princess and Prince had two crowns (C and C-2 cups).
Each crown had 8 opals (8 oz. (ounces)).
Draw your “Royal Land of Gallon” Below: