• Canada switched to the metric system in 1970.
• In all Canadian schools, the SI (the International
System of Units) is now taught.
• Temperature = ocelsius
• Rainfall = millimetres
• Snowfall = centimetres
• Speed limits = kilometres/hour
• Gas = litres
• Exceptions: we give our "weight" (mass) in pounds
and our height in feet and inches.
The units of measurement for Length, Mass and Volume:
Length
meter (m)
Mass
gram (g)
Volume
liter (l)
Litre
Metre
Gram
• If you’re moving UP the chart (to a smaller
unit), move the decimal to the LEFT the same
number of places to match the number of
exponents you moved through.
• If you’re moving DOWN the chart (to a larger
unit), move the decimal to the RIGHT the
same number of places to match the number
of exponents you moved through.
NOTE: If there is no decimal, it is at the end of
the number.
Ex. 1000 = 1000.
NOTE: If there are less numbers than places you
need to move your decimal, add zeros to fill in
place values.
Ex. 56.7 – move decimal 3 places to the right =
56700
Moving Up and the Chart to Convert
How many litres are in a kilolitre?
How many kilolitres are in a litre?
How many metres are in a millimetre?
How many millimetres are in a metre?
1000
0.001
0.001
1000
Another way to calculate conversions
• This paper is 21.6cm wide.
Convert to mm?
• How many mm are in 1 cm?
• 10
21.6 cm x 10 mm = 216 mm
1 cm
You MUST use this format when
you are converting TWO units
• Example: If an object is traveling 25 cm/min,
what is its speed in m/hour?
25 cm X 1 m X 60 min = 15 m/hour
min 100 cm
1 hour
Problems to try…
•
•
•
•
•
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•
3.2 m = ________mm
9.1 cm = _______m
26 kg = ________hg
16 l = __________ml
91km/hr = ___________m/s
362 m/s = ___________km/hr
612 m/s = ___________mm/min
•
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3.2 m = 3200 mm
9.1 cm = 910 m
26 kg = 260 hg
16 l = 16000 ml
91km/hr = 25.3 m/s
362 m/s = 1303 km/hr
612 m/s = 36,720,000 mm/min.