Smoothie Capacity Challenge

Investigating capacity and getting wet wet wet...

Lesson idea. This activity is intended to help young children understand the concept of the capacity of a container being something that can be measured and compared. It is intended that they develop a very practical understanding of this principle as preparation for investigating measuring capacity in both non-standard and standard units.

Teaching approach. This is a practical session to be used with a whole class in small groups^(ta) of 2 or 3 –perhaps with the added supervision of a teaching assistant if the class is excitable or particularly young. There is scope within this activity for the following different methods of learning:

• Whole class^(ta) dialogue - Discussion of each part of the activity
• Open-ended questions^(ta) – How can we find out if the containers hold the same amount? What can we tell just by looking at them?
• Project work – as part of a wider maths topic on measuring volume and capacity.
• Enquiry-based learning^(ta) – children are discovering the answer to questions that they are encouraged to pose themselves.
• Arguing and reasoning^(ta) – persuading each other about their ideas.
• Exploring ideas – developing practical, physical understanding of key mathematical principles.

Resource details
Title	Smoothie Capacity Challenge
Topic
Teaching approach
Learning Objectives	Understanding that capacity is the amount that a container can hold. Creating a method of comparing capacities.
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Table of contents
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Files and resources to view and download	Download the document here File:Smoothie Capacity Challenge.odt, or view it on the wiki Smoothie Capacity Challenge/Lesson Document
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