Measuring up: Pre-kindergarteners determine length

A unit on measuring length was implemented in a pre-kindergarten classroom, located in a suburban community. The class consists of seventeen students, five male and twelve female. Two of the students receive additional services regularly.; There were seven learning goals for the unit, each focusing on another key concept associated with measurement. The students improved their number identification skills, examined the comparative language associated with length, discovered the need for units, and learned the importance of standard units. After exploring other units for measuring length, each student got his/her own ruler and began measuring in inches. The entire unit lasted five weeks, with the last week and a half devoted to the design challenge and the post-assessments.; The students' knowledge of these concepts and skills was illustrated during the design challenge, where each student designed and built a robot out of cardboard boxes and tubes. Then, using a ruler, they had to measure and label each of the robots' parts. The students did very will with the design challenge. All were actively engaged and enthusiastic. Each robot was completely unique. They used their rulers correctly to measure. When completed, the students proudly shared the robots with their families at the Robot Showcase, which was held one evening in our classroom.; From the beginning to the end of the unit, I saw great improvements in the students' knowledge about measuring length, as was illustrated by their performances on the pre-assessment and post-assessment interviews. The students understood the key concepts of measurement and were able to illustrate this knowledge through their verbal explanations and performances in the design challenge.; As a result of implementing this unit, I learned that as long as the material is presented in an engaging and age-appropriate way, students even as young as pre-kindergarten can master key concepts. Throughout the unit, I was impressed by the students' participation and understanding of the topic. I feel that the experiences the students had during this unit will provide a strong foundation for all their future learning experiences with measurement.