Development of

Measurement and the

International System
of Units
Warm Up!
 Guide Questions

● What are the different body parts that we can use to

measure objects?

● Based on the video, what is the length of the classroom in

terms of foot spans?

● Let’s say that we measure a book using a hand span. Is it

possible to have a different measurements per person?
Why?
 Learn about It!

Measurement
1 finding a number that shows the size or amount of something

Example:

The distance between Manila and Batangas is 107 kilometers.

 Learn about It!

Traditional and Nonstandard Units of

2 Measurements
making use of body parts or nonstandard objects for measurement

Example:
Span (dangkal)

It is the distance from the tip of the little

finger to the tip of the thumb of an
outstretched hand.
 Learn about It!

Traditional and Nonstandard Units of

2 Measurements
making use of body parts or nonstandard objects for measurement

Example:
Palm

It is the the distance across the base of

the four fingers that form the palm.
 Learn about It!

Traditional and Nonstandard Units of

2 Measurements
making use of body parts or nonstandard objects for measurement

Example:
Cubit

It is the distance from the tip of the

middle finger of an outstretched hand to
the front of the elbow.
 Learn about It!

Traditional and Nonstandard Units of

2 Measurements
making use of body parts or nonstandard objects for measurement

Example:

This unit of measure is also known as the

forearm length.
Cubit
 Learn about It!

Traditional and Nonstandard Units of

2 Measurements
making use of body parts or nonstandard objects for measurement

Example:
Foot

It is the length of the foot.

 Learn about It!

Traditional and Nonstandard Units of

2 Measurements
making use of body parts or nonstandard objects for measurement

Example:
Pace

It is the distance of one full step.

 Learn about It!

English System of Units

3 historical units of measurements used in medieval England

Example:
Length Mass Volume
inch (in) pound (lb) tablespoon (tbsp)
foot (ft) ounces (oz) teaspoons (tsp)
yard (yd) ton fluid ounces (fl oz)
mile (mi) pint (pt)
  quart (qt)
gallon (gal)
 Learn about It!

English System of Units

3 historical units of measurements used in medieval England

Types of English System of Units based on Location

• Imperial System – used in Great Britain

• US Customary System of Units – used in the United States

 Learn about It!

English System of Units

3 historical units of measurements used in medieval England

This system is mainly used by three countries today.

• United States
• Liberia
• Myanmar
 Learn about It!

International System of Units (SI) or Metric System

4 of Measurement
standard way of expressing measures used worldwide

Example:
The following are the seven base units under the SI units of
measurement:
1. Length – meter (m)
2. Mass – kilogram (kg)
3. Time – seconds (s)
 Learn about It!

International System of Units (SI) or Metric System

4 of Measurement
standard way of expressing measures used worldwide

Example:
The following are the seven base units under the SI units of
measurement:

4. Amount of a substance – mole (mol)

5. Electric current – ampere (A)
 Learn about It!

International System of Units (SI) or Metric System

4 of Measurement
standard way of expressing measures used worldwide

Example:
The following are the seven base units under the SI units of
measurement:

6. Temperature – kelvin (K)

7. Luminous Intensity – candela (cd)
 Learn about It!
Other metric units are formed by adding a prefix to the above units of
measurement. The prefix tells how large or small a unit is.
Common Prefixes used in the Metric System
 Try It!

Example 1: Which of the following is not an SI unit of

measurement?
a. kilometer c. ounce
b. milligram d. mol
 Try It!

Example 1: Which of the following is not an SI unit of

measurement?
a. kilometer c. ounce
b. milligram d. mol

Solution:
Let us identify the system of measurement at which the
following choices are under.

a. Kilometer is an SI unit of distance.

b. Milligram is an SI unit of mass.
 Try It!

Example 1: Which of the following is not an SI unit of

measurement?
a. kilometer c. ounce
b. milligram d. mol

Solution:
Let us identify the system of measurement at which the
following choices are under.

c. Ounce is an English System unit of mass.

d. Mol is an SI unit for measuring the amount of a substance.
 Try It!

Example 1: Which of the following is not an SI unit of

measurement?
a. kilometer c. ounce
b. milligram d. mol

Solution:

Thus, ounce is the only measurement in the choices that is

not an SI unit.
 Try It!

Example 2: If you want to measure your height using the

metric system, what unit of measurement will you use?
 Try It!

Example 2: If you want to measure your height using the

metric system, what unit of measurement will you use?

Solution:

Finding the height of a person implies using length as a way

of measuring. Thus, we need to use the base unit in
measuring the length of an object, which is meter.
 Let’s Practice!

Individual Practice:

1. A student tries to differentiate the light emitted by a

candle, a flashlight and an LED (Light Emitting Diode).
What unit is he measuring?

2. In a series circuit, each load has a different current. What

is the unit of current?
 Let’s Practice!

Group Practice: To be done in groups of 4.

Marie is measuring the diameter of a 10-peso coin. What

should be the basic unit of her measurement in SI? What
specific metric units is appropriate to use?
Key Points

Measurement
1 finding a number that shows the size or amount of something

Traditional and Nonstandard Units of

2 Measurements
making use of body parts or nonstandard objects for measurement

English System of Units

3
3 historical units of measurements used in medieval England
Key Points

International System of Units (SI) or Metric System

4 of Measurement
standard way of expressing measures used worldwide