Primary Standard:

MAFS.4.MD.1.1: Know relative sizes of measurement units within one system of units including km, m, cm; lb, oz; l, ml; hr, min, sec.  Within a single system of measurement, express measurements in a larger unit in terms of a smaller unit.  Record measurement equivalents in a two-column table.  For example, know that 1 ft is 12 times as long as 1 in.  Express the length of a 4 ft snake as 48 in.  Generate a conversion table for feet and inches listing the number pairs (1,12), (2,24), (3,36)…

MAFS.4.MD.1.2: Use the four operations to solve world problems involving distances, intervals of time, and money, including problems involving simple fractions or decimals.  Represent fractional quantities of distance and intervals of time using linear models. (See glossary Table 1 and Table 2) (Computational fluency with fractions and decimals is not the goal for students at this grade level.)

MAFS.4.MD.1.3: Apply the area and perimeter formulas for rectangles in real world and mathematical problems.  For example, find the width of a rectangular room given the area of the flooring and the length, by viewing the area formula as a multiplication equation with an unknown factor.

Content Knowledge:

Measurement, with all of its real-world applications, provides a great context for 4th grade students’ application of problem-solving skills.  Students use their measurement understanding to solve problems related to all types of measurement.  At times, the problems relate to converting from a larger unit to a smaller one; at other times the problems require students to find elapsed time or determine a monetary amount.  As students explore these problems, we remind them to visualize the problems (e.g. bar models, number lines, conversion tables) and to use their understanding of measurement units to assess the reasonableness of their answers. In 3rd grade, students explored the concepts of both area and perimeter through problems, diagrams, and discussions.  They noticed shortcuts (formulas) for finding the area or perimeter of a figure and related this to addition and multiplication concepts.  In this Unit, students are now able to apply their understanding of these concepts and formulas to solve more complex problems.  They encounter problems in which they use a known area or perimeter and a known side measurement to find an unknown side measurement.  They also find the area and perimeter for irregular (rectilinear) figures, as well as recognize that figures with the same area may have different perimeters and figures the same perimeter may have different areas.


GCG 1 – Learning Goal: As a mathematician, I can Solve problems involving elapsed time and conversion of units of time

  • Step 1: Convert between units of time, applying work with operations, fractions, and decimals
  • Step 2: Solve word problems involving elapsed time and converting between units of time
  • Step 3: Solve multistep word problems involving elapsed time and converting between units of time

GCG 2 – Learning Goal: As a mathematician, I can Solve problems involving money using the four operations, fractions, and decimals

  • Step 1: Convert between units of money, applying work with operations, fractions, and decimals
  • Step 2: Solve word problems involving converting between units of money
  • Step 3: Solve multistep word problems involving converting between units of money

GCG 3 – Learning Goal: As a mathematician, I can Apply perimeter and area formulas and solve for missing side lengths of rectangles

  • Step 1: Apply the area and perimeter formulas when all side lengths are given
  • Step 2: Apply the area and perimeter formulas with rectangles when missing a side length
  • Step 3: Apply the area or perimeter formulas to solve problems

GCG 4 – Learning Goal: As a mathematician, I can Apply perimeter and area formulas and solve for missing side lengths of rectilinear figures

  • Step 1: Apply the area and perimeter formulas to find area or perimeter of rectilinear figures
  • Step 2: Apply the area and perimeter formulas to problem solve with rectilinear figures with missing side lengths