I Don’t Want to Drown!

During Morgan’s first swim lesson, she worried about how deep the water would be. ”Mommy, I am scared. I don’t want to drown.” To help calm her fears, I realized this was a good time to explain what the numbers on the edge of the pool means.

Conversation Starters

Why are there numbers on the edge of the pool?
What does the number to the right and left of decimal mean? (Ex: 1.0 means 1 whole meter while .9 means less than a meter?)
How do we measure a person’s height?
How long is a meter?
Are you taller or shorter than a meter?

Connection to Learning

To explain the purpose of measurement.
To understand how long is a meter.
To know that a meter is a standard unit of measurement.
To gain a very basic understanding of how decimals work.

Building Vocabulary

Meter
Centimetres

Further Discussions

After Morgan learned that she is taller than a meter, she became more comfortable in the pool. To expand her knowledge on measurements, I introduced centimetres and explained that there are 100 cm in one meter. "Lets see how tall you are in centimetres."

View Connections