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Year 2

Length can be measured in metres and centimetres

I can describe the size of a metre and a centimetre, and choose which unit might be best to measure different lengths.

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New
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Year 2

Length can be measured in metres and centimetres

I can describe the size of a metre and a centimetre, and choose which unit might be best to measure different lengths.

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Share activities with pupils
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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. Length is measured in metres and centimetres.
  2. 1 cm is about the width of your thumbnail.
  3. 1 metre is about the height of the door handle.

Keywords

  • Metres - A measure of length (about the height of a door handle).

  • Centimetres - A measure of length (about the width of your thumbnail).

Common misconception

Children may think that a metre and a centimetre are similar in length, due to the way they are presented in images that are not to scale.

Allow children to explore practically and develop a sense of the length of one centimetre and one metre. Find familiar items to reference specific lengths e.g. our classroom door is about one metre wide.

The children are not expected to measure during this lesson - they are developing a sense of how long one centimetre and one metre are. Measuring will be explored in a later lesson.
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Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on
Open Government Licence version 3.0
except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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Starter quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
The toy car is dominoes long.
An image in a quiz
Correct Answer: 5, five
Q2.
The pebble is as heavy as blocks.
An image in a quiz
Correct Answer: 10, ten
Q3.
Which of these units are non-standard units of measure?
centimetres or cm
Correct answer: paper clips
Correct answer: blocks
Q4.
In the story about Pedro Panda and Sydney Snake, the animals had different sized feet. Their feet are __________ units of measure.
An image in a quiz
standard
Correct answer: non-standard
Q5.
True or false. A standard unit of measure is always the same size. It does not get larger or smaller.
Correct answer: True
False
Q6.
Aisha used a __________ unit of measure to see how tall the astronaut is.
An image in a quiz
Correct answer: standard
non-standard

Exit quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
A metre is a __________ unit of measure.
Correct answer: standard
non-standard
Q2.
Which of these lengths could be about one metre?
The length of a ten pound note
Correct answer: The length of a guitar
The length of a carrot
Q3.
Match the parts of the sentence correctly.
Correct Answer:shorter,A centimetre is a __________ length than a metre.
tick

A centimetre is a __________ length than a metre.

Correct Answer:longer,A metre is a __________ length than a centimetre.
tick

A metre is a __________ length than a centimetre.

Q4.
True or false. It is sensible to measure the distance from one side of the classroom to the other in centimetres.
True
Correct answer: False
Q5.
Which lengths would you measure in metres?
The width of a book
Correct answer: The height of a door
The length of a pencil
Correct answer: The length of the classroom
Correct answer: The length of a skipping rope
Q6.
Choose the correct unit of measure. My pen is about 15 __________ long.
metres
Correct answer: centimetres