Before you introduce the concept of the customary units of measuring capacity, allow students to explore on their own. Give them several containers and ask them which they think will hold more. You can also have them estimate how may cups it will take to fill a pint-sized container. For older students, include fractions in the estimations. For example, ask them to determine how many one-fourth cups it will take to fill two cups. They can then convert their answers into pints.
A sponge race helps make the lesson on cups and pints more memorable for students. Divide the class into two teams and decide how long the race should last. A member of each team must race to a bucket of water on the opposite side of the room and soak their sponges in the water. They then run back to the starting line to wring out the sponges in their team’s buckets. This is repeated down the line until time has run out. The team with the most water wrung out of their sponges wins. To determine the winner, use cups and pints to measure the water that has been emptied out of the sponges.
Give the students word problems to help them demonstrate how measuring capacity can be used in the real world. Phrase the problems so that the students must practice conversions to determine which amount is larger. For instance, they may need to decide whether a half pint is greater than, less than or equal to one cup. Include pictures for the children to shade to help them solve the word problems, or provide containers for them to use while working.
One of the best ways for students to understand a lesson is for them to apply it to their everyday lives. Use cups and pints to make a recipe that you can enjoy together as a class. You can also have the students bring containers from home and determine how many cups and pints it takes to fill their containers. When the children see the lesson in practice, it will make it easier for them to recall the information.