NARRATOR: The metric system is a way of measuring things. So with length, the metric measurements are millimetres, centimetres, metres and kilometres.
A stamp, would be measured in millimetres.
There are ten millimetres in a centimetre.
We’d measure a doll house in centimetres.
There are 100 centimetres in a metre. We would measure a house in metres.
And there are 1000 metres in a kilometre.
We would measure an incredibly tall skyscraper in kilometres.
Stop it!
Metric measurements are also used for weight. When we talk about grams and kilograms, and millilitres and litres are used for volume.
BUILDER: Ahhh!
NARRATOR: Phew, that was lucky!
The metric system is used to measure the length, weight or volume of an object. Length is measured in millimetres (mm), centimetres (cm), metres (m) or kilometres (km).
- 1 cm = 10 mm
- 1 m = 100 cm
- 1 km = 1000 m
- 1 cm is about the width of a staple
- 1 m is about the width of a single bed
Weight is measured in grams (g) and kilograms (kg). Volume is measured in millilitres (ml) and litres (l).
- 1 kg = 1000 g
- 1 l = 1000 ml
- 1 kg is the weight of seven apples
- 1 l is the volume of a carton of orange juice
More on Measurement
Find out more by working through a topic
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