Chapter 6: Using Children’s Understandings of Linear Measurement to Inform Instruction

Linear measurement is a topic often left to the end of the school year and only addressed in time to prepare for standardized tests, and yet “measurement is one of the most widely used applications of mathematics” (NCTM, 2000). Repeatedly, research cites the complexity of measurement and children’s lack of understanding (Stephen and Clements, 2003; Grant and Kline, 2003). In many classrooms, children are taught how to use a measuring tool, but are not given the opportunity to explore the constructs behind the tools they are using (Nitabach & Lehrer, 1996; Lehrer, Jenkins, & Osana, 1998; Lehrer, Jacobson, Kemeny, & Strom, 1999; Grant & Kline, 2003). If we agree that children should “understand the units, systems, and processes of measurement” (NCTM, 2000), then we need to rethink our own understanding of measurement and the types of experiences teachers provide children.