teaching resource

Comparing Capacity Year 1 and Foundation Activity

Updated: 17 Mar 2025

Share this comparing capacity year 1 and foundation activity with your students to introduce them to early measurement concepts.

Editable: Google Slides
Non-Editable: PDF
Pages: 1 Page
Years: F - 2

Curriculum

VC2M1M01

Compare directly and indirectly and order objects and events using attributes of length, mass, capacity and duration, communicating reasoning <ul> <li>using a piece of string to indirectly compare the length of several objects, deciding which will fit within a space, and using comparative language to describe the order (shortest, short, longer, longest)</li> <li>ordering the mass of 3 or more objects, such as rocks, using hefting and balance scales, and using comparative language to explain the order (lightest, light, heavier, heaviest) and how they decided on the order</li> <li>pouring sand, rice or water from one container to another to compare and order the capacity of 3 or more containers, and describing the order of the results in terms of which holds the most/least and those in between</li> <li>creating sand timers from everyday items or recycled materials and comparing them to order the duration of time required for the sand to run through</li> <li>investigating situations where Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander Peoples estimate, compare and communicate measurements, for example, situations involving the duration of seasons, understanding animal behaviour using the length of animal tracks, or investigating capacity through Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander water management techniques, such as traditional water-carrying vessels and rock holes</li> </ul>
VC2MFM01

Identify and compare attributes of objects and events, including length, capacity, mass and duration, use direct comparisons and communicate reasoning <ul> <li>using language to describe the measurement attributes of length, mass, capacity and duration, and connecting the words with the appropriate attribute; for example, using words like ‘tall’, ‘short’, ‘wide’, ‘long’ and ‘high’ to describe the attribute of length</li> <li>directly comparing pairs of objects to say which is longer/shorter, and explaining or demonstrating how they know; for example, standing back-to-back to determine who is taller or choosing to line up the bases of a spoon and fork to decide which is longer and explaining why</li> <li>starting 2 events at the same time to decide which takes longer; for example, putting on a pair of sandals with buckles or Velcro, describing the duration using familiar terms and reasoning, ‘I took a longer time because I’m still learning to do up my buckles’</li> <li>directly comparing pairs of everyday objects from the kitchen pantry to say which is heavier/lighter; for example, hefting a tin of baked beans and a packet of marshmallows or comparing the same pair of objects to say which is longer/shorter and discussing comparisons</li> </ul>
VC2M2M01

Measure and compare objects based on length, capacity and mass using appropriate uniform informal units and smaller units for accuracy when necessary <ul> <li>choosing suitable informal units to measure the length of a range of objects, and justifying their choice of a longer unit to measure things that are long (such as the width of a room) and a shorter unit to measure shorter things or when more accuracy is needed</li> <li>comparing the capacity of several containers using sand and units such as a spoon or cup, to say which container will hold the most and how much more it will hold; recording the results; writing an explanation of their measurement process, including using smaller units to be more accurate; and justifying the result</li> <li>using balance scales to compare the mass of several objects, selecting an appropriate informal unit; counting the number of informal units to determine which object is heavier and how much heavier; and explaining why the informal units chosen need to be the same mass</li> <li>recognising that the same informal unit needs to be used when measuring (for example, demonstrating and discussing why using different shoe lengths to measure the same distance could result in the measures being different) and discussing why a smaller-sized informal unit may result in a larger number of units compared to a larger-sized informal unit</li> <li>investigating Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander Peoples’ use of body parts, such as hands, as uniform informal units of measurement used to measure and compare objects, for example, in the manufacturing of nets for a particular purpose</li> <li>investigating and comparing measurable attributes that are interpreted by Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander Peoples to understand animal behaviour, such as the length, width and depth of animal tracks</li> </ul>

teaching resource

Comparing Capacity Year 1 and Foundation Activity

Updated: 17 Mar 2025

Share this comparing capacity year 1 and foundation activity with your students to introduce them to early measurement concepts.

Editable: Google Slides
Non-Editable: PDF
Pages: 1 Page
Years: F - 2

Share this comparing capacity year 1 and foundation activity with your students to introduce them to early measurement concepts.

A Fun Comparing Capacity Year 1 and Foundation Activity

Enhance your students’ understanding of measurement with our comparing capacity year 1 and foundation activity! This cut-and-paste worksheet helps young learners grasp the concept of capacity while practising their fine motor skills. Students will enjoy sorting everyday objects such as a salt shaker, vase, bucket and teacup from the smallest to the largest capacity.

Included in this comparing capacity year 1 resource:

Colour cut-and-paste worksheet
Black-and-white cut-and-paste worksheet
Answer key

Make capacity comparison fun and interactive with this hands-on activity that works wonderfully as independent practice, a maths station activity or a guided group assignment!

Supplement Our Volume and Capacity Kindergarten Worksheet

This volume and capacity kindergarten worksheet is a great way to introduce your students to capacity. But don’t stop there! Here are some ideas for some additional comparing capacity year 1 activities that will get your students moving.

Water Stations – Set up stations where students can pour water from one container to another. Ask them to predict whether a small container or a large container will hold more water, and then test their ideas.
Estimating Containers – Show students a few containers and ask them to estimate how many snap cubes will fit in each container, then test their hypothesis.
Hands-On Capacity Sort – Give students a set of containers and items. Ask them to sort the containers into groups of ‘small,’ ‘medium’ and ‘large’ based on how many items they think each one can hold. After sorting, let them test their ideas by filling the containers. You can also have them order the containers from least to greatest capacity, like this worksheet!

Download These Capacity More or Less Worksheets

These capacity more or less worksheets are easy to download, print and use. Just click the drop-down arrow on the download button and choose between the Google Slides and PDF format of this resource.

This resource was created by April Tierney, a teacher and a Teach Starter collaborator.

More Volume and Capacity Kindergarten Resources

We have additional volume and capacity kindergarten resources available! Take a look at the activities below.

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Measurement Worksheets for Foundation - Mass, Length, Capacity

Practise comparing units of mass, capacity, and length with a printable pack of foundation measurement worksheets.

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Year 1 Measuring Capacity Worksheets

Improve students' basic understanding of liquid measurement with a set of printable Capacity Worksheets for Year 1.

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Measuring, Comparing and Ordering Capacity Worksheet

A worksheet that explores the concept of capacity using informal units of measurement.

Curriculum

VC2M1M01

Compare directly and indirectly and order objects and events using attributes of length, mass, capacity and duration, communicating reasoning <ul> <li>using a piece of string to indirectly compare the length of several objects, deciding which will fit within a space, and using comparative language to describe the order (shortest, short, longer, longest)</li> <li>ordering the mass of 3 or more objects, such as rocks, using hefting and balance scales, and using comparative language to explain the order (lightest, light, heavier, heaviest) and how they decided on the order</li> <li>pouring sand, rice or water from one container to another to compare and order the capacity of 3 or more containers, and describing the order of the results in terms of which holds the most/least and those in between</li> <li>creating sand timers from everyday items or recycled materials and comparing them to order the duration of time required for the sand to run through</li> <li>investigating situations where Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander Peoples estimate, compare and communicate measurements, for example, situations involving the duration of seasons, understanding animal behaviour using the length of animal tracks, or investigating capacity through Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander water management techniques, such as traditional water-carrying vessels and rock holes</li> </ul>
VC2MFM01

Identify and compare attributes of objects and events, including length, capacity, mass and duration, use direct comparisons and communicate reasoning <ul> <li>using language to describe the measurement attributes of length, mass, capacity and duration, and connecting the words with the appropriate attribute; for example, using words like ‘tall’, ‘short’, ‘wide’, ‘long’ and ‘high’ to describe the attribute of length</li> <li>directly comparing pairs of objects to say which is longer/shorter, and explaining or demonstrating how they know; for example, standing back-to-back to determine who is taller or choosing to line up the bases of a spoon and fork to decide which is longer and explaining why</li> <li>starting 2 events at the same time to decide which takes longer; for example, putting on a pair of sandals with buckles or Velcro, describing the duration using familiar terms and reasoning, ‘I took a longer time because I’m still learning to do up my buckles’</li> <li>directly comparing pairs of everyday objects from the kitchen pantry to say which is heavier/lighter; for example, hefting a tin of baked beans and a packet of marshmallows or comparing the same pair of objects to say which is longer/shorter and discussing comparisons</li> </ul>
VC2M2M01

Measure and compare objects based on length, capacity and mass using appropriate uniform informal units and smaller units for accuracy when necessary <ul> <li>choosing suitable informal units to measure the length of a range of objects, and justifying their choice of a longer unit to measure things that are long (such as the width of a room) and a shorter unit to measure shorter things or when more accuracy is needed</li> <li>comparing the capacity of several containers using sand and units such as a spoon or cup, to say which container will hold the most and how much more it will hold; recording the results; writing an explanation of their measurement process, including using smaller units to be more accurate; and justifying the result</li> <li>using balance scales to compare the mass of several objects, selecting an appropriate informal unit; counting the number of informal units to determine which object is heavier and how much heavier; and explaining why the informal units chosen need to be the same mass</li> <li>recognising that the same informal unit needs to be used when measuring (for example, demonstrating and discussing why using different shoe lengths to measure the same distance could result in the measures being different) and discussing why a smaller-sized informal unit may result in a larger number of units compared to a larger-sized informal unit</li> <li>investigating Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander Peoples’ use of body parts, such as hands, as uniform informal units of measurement used to measure and compare objects, for example, in the manufacturing of nets for a particular purpose</li> <li>investigating and comparing measurable attributes that are interpreted by Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander Peoples to understand animal behaviour, such as the length, width and depth of animal tracks</li> </ul>

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