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Features

Candy canes to cut out and lay end to end, then a centimeter and an inch ruler to cut out
A color key by length: measure the string, then color its bulbs
Three strings in a row: the longest red, the shortest green
Two strings: color the longer one, then find how much longer
A pattern for each length: red, green, red, green ...
The bulbs are not one to a unit, so the strings must be measured, not counted
Every page in color and in black and white, color words beside every color
Answer keys included, with the bulbs colored in

Skills Covered

Measure a length with units laid end to end
Measure with a ruler in centimeters and inches
Line up 0 with the start of the string

Order three lengths from longest to shortest
Find how much longer one string is than another
Follow a color key and a color pattern

How to Use This Pack

Six pages of measuring and coloring. The strings of lights are already drawn between hooks, each with a number and empty bulbs. Measure each string from the middle of one hook to the middle of the next, write its length, then color its bulbs. Page 1 has candy canes to cut apart and lay end to end, with no gaps and no overlaps, and a color key by length ("The 4 candy cane string is red."). Page 2 uses a centimeter ruler cut out of the page and page 3 an inch ruler, each with a color key. On page 4 each row has three strings: color the longest red, the shortest green and the other one yellow. Page 5 has pairs: color the longer string blue and the shorter one yellow, and write how much longer it is. Page 6 gives each length its own pattern of colors. The first string or row on each page is worked as an example.

In the Classroom

Cut the candy canes and rulers out together, and show how to put the first candy cane, or the 0 on the ruler, at the middle of the first hook. Ask why the number of bulbs is not the length: the bulbs are not one to a centimeter, so the string has to be measured. Page 1 suits 1st grade; pages 2 and 3 work for 1st graders who use a ruler and for 2nd grade, and page 5's how much longer is 2nd grade.

At Home

Measure a pencil, a spoon or a toy car with paper clips laid end to end, then with a ruler. When the Christmas lights come out, line two strings up side by side and say which one is longer.

Tips for Success

Measure from the middle of one hook to the middle of the next
Candy canes go end to end: no gaps and no overlaps
Put 0 on the ruler at the first hook, not the end of the paper
Count the units, not the bulbs
How much longer: take the shorter length from the longer one

Common Core Standards Alignment

This pack supports the following Common Core State Standards for Mathematics:

1.MD.A.1 Put three objects in order from longest to shortest, and compare two lengths by checking each against a third object.
1.MD.A.2 Measure an object by lining up equal-size units (like cubes) along it without spaces or overlapping, and give the whole-number count.
2.MD.A.1 Choose a suitable tool, such as a ruler, yardstick, meter stick or tape measure, and use it to measure length.
2.MD.A.2 Measure one object with two different units, such as inches and centimeters, and explain why a smaller unit gives a bigger number.
2.MD.A.4 Measure two objects and find the difference in their lengths in a standard unit.
2.MD.B.5 Solve story problems about lengths in the same unit, adding or subtracting within 100, with drawings like rulers and equations.
2.MD.D.9 Measure several objects, or one object several times, in whole units and display the results on a line plot.

Color the Christmas Lights: Measuring

1st – 2nd Grade

Measuring strings of Christmas lights hung on houses, a porch, a fence, a window and a row of trees. Students measure each string with cut-out candy canes or a cut-out ruler, write its length and color its bulbs by a color key, by longest and shortest, or in a pattern.

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What’s Included

6 worksheets, each with a matching answer key
Every worksheet in color and in black and white
Candy canes to cut out, and a centimeter and an inch ruler to cut out
Strings on houses, a porch rail, a fence, a window and a row of trees
Keys with every length and every bulb colored in

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Free to print and share

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