Question Video: Choosing a Suitable Unit for the Length of an Object

Video Transcript

Pick the most sensible unit to measure the length of a pencil. Feet, inches, or yards.

We have to decide how we would measure the length of a pencil. Would we measure a pencil in feet, inches, or yards? We know that a foot measures 12 inches. Before measures were invented, people used their hands and feet to measure things. A yard is the size of three feet. Three feet equals one yard. A pencil would be much shorter than a yard. Inches are the smallest of all three units of measurement.

We already know that we need 12 inches to make one foot. We use yards to measure long distances like football pitches. We use feet to measure distances also. We also use feet to measure the height of people. We use inches to measure smaller objects. So, the most sensible unit to measure the length of a pencil would be inches.