The guppy in the pet store ripples through the water as he swims, so Carlos names him Ripley. Carlos wants to buy Ripley, though first he needs to set up a fish bowl at home with a little help from big sister Ana. He pours a cup of water into the bowl, but it isn't nearly enough. Then another cup, which makes a pint. But he needs more. How many pints make a quart? How many quarts in a half-gallon? In a gallon? It sure takes a lot of water to keep a little fish happy!
Children need to understand the relationships between the various units used to measure liquid capacity.
Illustrated by Sylvie Wickstrom.
Ask questions throughout the story, such as: "How much water is in the tank now?" "Do you think that will be enough water for Ripley, or will Carlos have to add more?" "Is a pint more or less than a quart?
Give your child (or students) a measuring cup and a large jar or container. Have them estimate how many cups of water it will take to fill the jar, and then keep track of the cups as the container is filled with water. After the container is filled, help them figure out the capacity of the container. Is it approximately a pint? A quart? A half gallon? A gallon?
With your child at home in your kitchen, or at the supermarket, identify items such as milk, water or cottage cheese that come in containers of different capacities. What comes in cups? In pints? In quarts? In half gallons? In gallons?