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Everyday Estimation

Everyday Estimation Banner

Mass | Length | Area | Volume | Temperature

Estimation is more than taking a guess!  The ability to interpret measurement scales and approximate a quantity are essential Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) competencies. This important approximation tool helps interpret the world around us:

  • Comparisons – relative size or quantity
  • Magnitude of small and large numbers
  • Ordering
  • Spatial reasoning
  • Sensemaking
  • Checking for reasonableness

Estimation is used when it’s not important to find an exact measurement. Estimations are also valuable when developing a hypothesis and evaluating if experimental data results are reasonable. Refining estimation skills through practice improves proficiency (and accuracy)!

Educators are invited to attend the free Metric Estimation professional development webinar, which presents the Metric Estimation Game as a model learning activity designed to develop and reinforce estimation skills, select and use appropriate measurement tools, and determine measurement unit quantity, scale, and magnitude. Explore these tables to learn more about approximate measurements and develop reference points.

Two photos show liter models: A paper cube on the left, and a plastic cube with colored blocks inside on the right.
Liter models can help build estimation skills.
Credit: NIST

 

 

 

 

 

 

Mass section banner
6 RgEarth
1300 kgSmall Automobile
70 kgLarge Dog (Great Dane)
15 kgBicycle
5 kgCat
850 gBaseball Bat
270 gNCAA Volleyball
150 gCell Phone
100 gMedium Red Delicious Apple
46 gGolf Ball
5 gNickel Coin ($0.05)
2.5 gPenny Coin ($0.01)
1 gCurrency Note (regardless of denomination)
600 mgCotton Ball

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Length section banners
150 GmDistance from Earth to Sun
40 MmCircumference of Earth
43 kmNIST (Gaithersburg, MD) to The Whitehouse
11 kmMariana Trench
90 mFootball Field (Length)
3.7 mInterstate Highway Lane (Width)
1 mNCAA Volleyball Net (Width)
153 mmCurrency ($5 Bill)
66 cmNCAA Volleyball (Circumference)
19 cmPencil
1 mmThickness of a Dime
7 µmAverage Human Hair

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Area SI section banner
162 m²
(9 m) x (18 m)
NCAA Volleyball Court
616 cm²
(22 cm) x (28 cm)
Office Paper
550 mm2
(25 mm x 22 mm)
First Class U.S. Postage Stamp

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Volume SI section banner
1 MLOlympic Swimming Pool
235 LBathtub
5 LBlood in Human Body
4LFull Human Stomach
3.79 LGallon of Milk
500 mLAir per Breath at Rest (Tidal Volume) Adult Human Male
400 mLAir per Breath at Rest (Tidal Volume) Adult Human Female
355 mLSoda Pop Can
200 mLJuice Box
80 mLEmpty Human Stomach
15 mLEye Drop Bottle

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Temperature SI section banner
5500 °CSurface of the Sun
100 °CWater Boils
40 °CSweltering Day
37 °CHuman Body
30 °CHot Day
20 °CComfortable Room
10 °CCold Day
0 °CWater Freezes

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Contacts

Created February 4, 2010, Updated July 7, 2025
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