Converting Unit - Miles and Kilometres - Presentation

In a comprehensive lesson centred around the conversion between miles and kilometres, students are presented with a series of engaging activities designed to enhance their fluency and reasoning skills in measurement. The lesson begins with a discussion prompt, encouraging learners to consider real-life situations where measurements in miles are used and when they might need to convert these to kilometres. The initial activity sets the stage by providing a conversion approximation: 5 miles is roughly equivalent to 8 kilometres. Students are then tasked with applying this information to calculate conversions for different distances, such as determining how many kilometres are in 10 miles or how many miles are in 64 kilometres. They also compare distances run by two individuals, Sophie and Kimberly, to identify who ran the furthest.

Further activities build on this foundational knowledge, where students work through various problems converting distances in miles to kilometres and vice versa using the given approximation. They perform calculations for set distances, such as 20 miles or 800 kilometres, and are also challenged with reasoning tasks. One such task involves a 3-mile race between Leanna and Tia, where students must determine who has the furthest left to run based on the distances each has covered so far. Another reasoning activity involves calculating the time it would take for a truck to travel from Glasgow to Liverpool at a certain speed. The lesson culminates with independent work, prompting learners to prove their understanding by solving problems related to distance conversions and to discuss potential scenarios where such conversions are necessary, reinforcing the practical application of their mathematical skills.