Measurement Mass Worksheets
The measure of mass is commonly mistaken for weight. Yes, they are very common and even on planet Earth they can be considered one and the same thing. Mass is a measure of how much matter an object contains. Weight is a measure that is based on gravity or the invisible force that pulls everything to the center of the planet. This truly does not make much of a difference, unless you are able to escape the force of gravity. Then again, if you do escape gravity, it means everything. In this topic we will look at all different types of measures of mass, how to convert between them, we will help you understand relative differences in mass, and what they mean relative to one another. These worksheets and lessons will teach students how to convert and measure metric units of mass.
Aligned Standard: 4.MD.A.1
- Step-by-Step Lesson- Marty can lift a whole bunch of paper clips; or stamps for that matter!
- Guided Lesson - We look for heavy measures, the mass of a strawberry, and we see if the Chef has enough flour.
- Guided Lesson Explanation - We lock in on the concept of cross multiplication.
- Relative Metric Mass Worksheet - About how much does that doggie in the window weigh?
- Word Problems Worksheet - Time to convert the mass of some salt, flour (again), pennies, and some candy.
- Answer Keys - These are for all the unlocked materials above.
Homework Sheets
You will find that students have no idea how much a couch weighs. That will change in college, for sure!
- Homework 1 - Look at the picture of each item. Circle the mass would best describe how much the object weighed.
- Homework 2 - Convert between differing unit of: milligrams, grams, and kilograms.
- Homework 3 - The prefix "kilo‐" means 1,000. This tells us that 1 kilogram = 1,000 grams.
- Homework 4 - Complete the conversions.
Practice Worksheets
Time to work with the units of decigrams, centigrams, milligrams, grams, decagrams, hectograms, and kilograms.
- Practice 1 - Sharon bought a butternut squash. It weighed 4.5 kg. How many hectograms did her butternut squash weigh? Show your work.
- Practice 2 - If a paperclip weighs 1 gram, if we find the number of grams that Marty lifted, this will be equal to the number of paperclips that he could lift over his head.
- Practice 3 - 1000 milligrams (mg) is equivalent to 1 gram (g).
- Practice 4 - We need to find which mass is the largest (highest).
- Practice 5 - You will need to convert a bunch of different units.
Math Skill Quizzes
Students always find the relative visual masses the toughest of all of the quizzes.
- Quiz 1 - A can of soda is closest to which metric unit value?
- Quiz 2 - The boxes of cotton balls were 6 kilograms. How many decagrams is that in all? Show your work.
- Quiz 3 - Note: you could convert them to any unit, as long as they are all in the unit of measure.
- Quiz 4 - Compare measures that are in the same units. This will save us some work.
Common Metric Units of Mass
Do you know what mass is? In very plain words, mass is the amount of matter present in a body. Regardless of the shape and size of the object, as long as it contains some amount of matter in it, it will have mass too. On planet Earth your mass and weight are one and the same. When you leave Earth, based on gravity exerted on you, your weight changes. Your mass, on the other hand, never changes.
Just like we use certain units to denote different values such as length, width, volume, and others, we need units for measuring mass as well. The system followed for using the appropriate unit for measuring mass is known as the Metric System. According to the Metric System, the units used for the measurement of mass are milligram, gram, and kilogram. Grams serve as the standard unit and the prefix found in front indicates the power of ten that either scales the value up or down.
The smallest, commonly used, unit for measuring mass is milligram. Objects with very little masses are measured in milligrams. Milligram is abbreviated as mg. The unit next to milligram is gram. There are 1,000 milligrams in a gram. Grams are usually used for measuring objects such as baking sodas or cocoa powders. Gram is abbreviated as g. For the heaviest objects, the unit used is known as kilogram. Objects which have the largest amounts of masses are measured in kilograms. There are 1,000 grams in a kilogram. Kilogram is abbreviated as kg.