As an introductory measuring activity with gummy worms, provide each child with a small plastic bag of gummy worms of various sizes. Children can arrange the worms from shortest to longest, and vice versa, on their desk. They can play with the pliability of each worm to stretch them to a longer length or squash them to a shorter length. This may also be an opportune time for children to describe the physical characteristic of the worms, such as colors and texture. Provide children with a ruler and have them measure the length of each worm. They can label each worm and record each measurement.
Estimation is a valuable math skill that children must practice. After students have had some warm-up time with the gummy worms have them estimate several lengths or distances. For example, they can estimate how many gummy worms it would take to cover the perimeter of a book or the arm span of a fellow student. They may find it helpful to lay one worm on the length they must estimate and then make their "guess" accordingly. They can then test how close their estimations were by covering the length or distance with the appropriate number of gummy worms. Make sure children line the worms from head to tail without overlapping them or leaving any spaces. Older students can add quantities to these estimates. For example, if they are working with gummy worms that are approximately 2 inches long, and they estimate the distance to be 10 worms long, they are estimating a distance of 20 inches.
A scavenger hunt is an activity that most children enjoy. Incorporate a worm measurement skill into a scavenger hunt. Make a list that includes finding objects that are certain lengths, such as "find two objects that are one worm long" or "find one object that is two and a half worms long."
For children who are focusing on measuring the average length of a gummy worm, you can complement this with a mental math activity. Call out different measurements and have children set aside the number of worms that would approximately meet this total measure. For example, if you call out "15 inches" and the average worm is 2 inches long, students should set aside seven and a half or eight gummy worms. Have children take turns coming in front of the class; when you call out a measurement, the child can eat the number of gummy worms that represent that measure.
Montana State University describes a popular dessert called "edible soil." The recipe calls for ingredients such as gummy worms, dark cookie crumbs, chocolate pudding and coconut to create an edible ecosystem of soil. Children can create this delicious worm habitat to practice measuring quantities used in everyday life. Write out a recipe that reflects the capacity measurements you would like the students to practice such as cups, ounces or pounds. Children can work together in groups and follow the recipe to create the dessert, while practicing their measuring skills.