Skip to content
Brainsladder

Measure Length to the Nearest Half and Quarter Inch

Students will use rulers with markings for whole inches, half inches, and quarter inches to measure the lengths of objects. They will identify and read the fractional markings on a ruler and record measurements as fractions (e.g., 3½ inches, 2¼ inches).

Try three of them

Real questions from this skill, graded here. No account, and nothing is saved.

Measure Length to the Nearest Half and Quarter Inch

Grade 3 · Measurement Data & Line Plots · question 1 of 3

0 of 12

12 rungs. A star at the top.

the stick0123456in

At the campsite, Jules collects sticks for a fire. How long is the stick on the ruler?

Read the ruler to the nearest mark.

Your answer:

How it is taught

0:00 of 3:15

An inch can be split into halves and fourths.

Length is the distance from the 0 mark to the end.

the chalk0123456in

Read it: Read a ruler in quarters

The nail starts at the 1 mark and ends at the 2 3/4 mark. Count the quarter-jumps from start to end: 7. Each jump is 1/4 inch, so the nail is 1 3/4 inches long.

  1. Find what each small jump is worth: 1/2 or 1/4 inch.
  2. Count the small jumps from where the bar starts to where it ends.
  3. Every 4 quarter-jumps make 1 inch; the jumps left over are quarters.

A ruler in quarters puts 4 small jumps between each whole inch, so each jump is 1/4 inch.

A bar that starts at the 1 mark is measured from there, so you count only its own jumps.

7 quarter-jumps are 4 jumps for 1 inch and 3 jumps for 3/4 inch: 1 3/4 inches.

Count the small jumps from start to end, then name them in halves or quarters.

Reading 3 small marks past 2 as 2.3.

Each small mark is 1/4 inch, so 3 marks past 2 is 2 3/4, never 2.3.

On a ruler marked in halves of an inch, a ribbon runs from the 1 mark to the 2 1/2 mark. How long is it? — 1 1/2. 3 half-jumps from the 1 mark to the 2 1/2 mark: 1 1/2 inches.

Measuring a crayon to the nearest quarter inch

How long is this crayon? Let's measure it with our ruler.

The biggest marks on a ruler show whole inches — zero, one, two, three, and four.

The medium marks show half inches — they sit right in the middle of every inch.

The smallest marks show quarter inches — they split each inch into four equal parts.

First, line up the left end of the crayon with the zero on the ruler.

Now look at where the other end of the crayon stops.

It goes past the three, but it doesn't reach the four.

It lands right on the first little mark after three — that's one quarter past three.

Grade 3 · Reading whole, half, and quarter inch marks

So we write this length as three and one quarter inches.

The crayon is three and one quarter inches long. Great measuring!

Now you try. Read the length on this ruler. How long is it?

What you see

While they climb, your page writes one true line to ask about tonight, and a short note each Sunday.

MayaGrade 3 · Mathematics
Did you know?

A chessboard has 64 squares — share them out between the 8 rows and each row holds exactly 8.

Today’s goal
1 star — one skill mastered, every rung of its ladder climbed
Climbing now
Divide within 100

An example student.

MayaGrade 3 · Mathematics

Maya earned 2 stars this week — Interpret multiplication as equal groups, which took 6 answers over 3 days before its star landed 3 days ago and Multiply by 6, 7, 8 and 9. Next up: Divide within 100.

An example week.

More of the library

Every skill has a page

Practise this skill free

14 days of every skill, practice packets, Fluency sheets and up to four students. No card.

Start free