Converting Feet to Yards with Smack Dab in the Middle of Maybe

INTRODUCTION 

On pages 23-24 of the novel, Cricket describes the tree house, stating that it is seven feet off of the ground. In Converting Measurements #1, students learned how to convert feet to inches.

1. Review 1 foot = 12 inches. Write it on the board.

2. Remind the students that the tree house is 7 feet off the ground. Point out the tape on the wall indicating 7 feet. Review that 7 feet = 84 inches. Write it on the board.

3. Show the students a yardstick. Turn the yardstick upside down so the units do not show. Ask the students how long they think the yardstick is.

4. Have one student come up and measure the yardstick with a 12-inch ruler.

5. Make a note on the board that one yard = 3 feet.

6. Ask the class to figure out how many inches are in 3 feet.

7. Show the class the side of the yardstick with the measurements. Point out the feet and inches. Write on the board 3 feet = 36 inches.

MAIN LESSON

1. Tell students they’re going to find the distance from the treehouse to the ground in yards. Point out the note on the board that one yard = 3 feet. Give the students a few minutes to figure out the conversion on their own.

2. As a class, show how the conversion was made. Cricket’s treehouse is seven feet off the ground. Provide 3 students with yardsticks. Have them come up to the wall and measure to the mark with the yardsticks. Start from the top and measure downward. When the first two students add his/her yardsticks, write the number of yards on the board. It should look something like this:

1
1

3. When the third student measures, note that they are measuring just one foot or 1/3 of a yard. Write it on the board. Now your numbers should look like this:

1
1
1/3

4. Tell the class to add the numbers. Since the mark is 7 feet high, it is equal to 2 1/3 yards.

5. Ask the students for an easier way to convert it. Students should answer 7 divided by 3. On the board, Show students how to compute this mathematically.

6. Reiterate that when converting from feet to yards, you divide the number of feet by 3 (the number of feet in one yard).

INDEPENDENT PRACTICE 

1. Provide students with other distances from the treehouse from the ground.
2. Have the students convert the distances from feet to yards.

Differentiation: Begin working with yards in whole number intervals prior to adding in mixed numbers, then converting to feet. 

Extension: Provide the students with foot-long rulers. Have them measure different distances around the classroom, such as the length of the teacher’s desk, the distance from a window to the adjoining wall, or the height of the classroom door. Instruct the students to convert these distances from feet to yards. Then have them use a yardstick to check their answers.

Assess students’ understanding of converting feet to yards using the additional distance problems given to the students.