{"type":"default","seo":{"title":"Grades 9–12 Math Activity Set 1 | HMH","description":"Teach high school students about precision and accuracy, significant digits, and errors in measurement with these downloadable activities.","headercode":"","ogtitle":"Grades 9–12 Math Activity Set 1: Precision, Accuracy, and More","ogdescription":"Teach high school students about precision and accuracy, significant digits, and errors in measurement with these downloadable activities.","ogimage":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/int-hmhco-vmg-craftcms-public/seo/Math-Image-Opt-2_4c284b73b1b0834026b992b9ac93d6bd.jpg","seosettings":{"noIndexNoFollow":false,"showGtm":true},"keywords":"","canonical":""},"redirect":[],"entrysettings":{"includeinsearch":true,"showglobalmessaging":true},"globalsettings":{"standardheader":true,"standardfooter":true},"url":"/blog/grades-9-12-math-activities-week-1","id":74732,"title":"Grades 9–12 Math Activity Set 1: Precision, Accuracy, and More","slug":"grades-9-12-math-activities-week-1","bodycontainer":[{"type":"copy","headline":null,"richtext":"
The activities below are about precision, accuracy, significant digits, errors in measurement, and measurement conversions. Each activity is provided as a lesson plan that can span a full math period.
Materials:
Each lesson has an answer sheet that provides guidance, a description of the key concept, and questions from the lesson. You or students can use this sheet to check answers.
The student sheet can be printed and completed by the student, or the student can write the answers on a separate document.
Scale (Students can use a food scale set to grams or a bathroom scale. If needed, note to divide by 1,000 to convert kilograms to grams and to divide by 454 to convert pounds to grams.)
Block of wood, metal, or other solid uniform material in the shape of a rectangular prism
The terms precision and accuracy are often used interchangeably in everyday speech, but they have distinct meanings in mathematics. Use this lesson to compare the precision and accuracy of measurements and learn about tolerance.
The number of digits in a measurement is related to the precision of the measurement. Significant digits are those digits of a measurement that contribute to the precision of the measurement. Use this lesson to learn how to identify significant digits and use the correct number of significant digits in reporting the result of a calculation.
The significance of an error in measurement depends on both the accuracy of the measurement and the magnitude of what is being measured. Use this lesson to understand both absolute and relative error and to explore how the relative error is influenced by the accuracy of the measurements being used.
The density of a material is its mass per unit volume. In this lab, you will use what you have learned about precision, accuracy, significant digits, and measurement errors to calculate the density of an object.
An essential idea behind using conversion factors is the concept that when you multiply a measurement by 1, its value is unchanged. Use this lesson to learn how to convert measurements within and between systems, and how to convert derived units (for example, meters per second to miles per hour).
Engage every student in Grades 9–12 with Into Algebra 1, Geometry, and Algebra 2, our core math curriculum that supports learners in developing conceptual understanding and procedural fluency.
This blog, originally published in 2020, has been updated for 2025.
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Download our free activities calendar for fun lessons to do with your class, plus engaging ways to commemorate and celebrate events throughout the year.
Download our free activities calendar for fun lessons to do with your class, plus engaging ways to commemorate and celebrate events throughout the year.
Get our free administrator’s guide to building a positive school culture, filled with practical advice, real-world examples, and resources for further exploration.
Download our free activities calendar for fun lessons to do with your class, plus engaging ways to commemorate and celebrate events throughout the year.
Get our free administrator’s guide to building a positive school culture, filled with practical advice, real-world examples, and resources for further exploration.
The activities below are about precision, accuracy, significant digits, errors in measurement, and measurement conversions. Each activity is provided as a lesson plan that can span a full math period.
Materials:
Each lesson has an answer sheet that provides guidance, a description of the key concept, and questions from the lesson. You or students can use this sheet to check answers.
The student sheet can be printed and completed by the student, or the student can write the answers on a separate document.
Scale (Students can use a food scale set to grams or a bathroom scale. If needed, note to divide by 1,000 to convert kilograms to grams and to divide by 454 to convert pounds to grams.)
Block of wood, metal, or other solid uniform material in the shape of a rectangular prism
Activity 1: Precision and accuracy
The terms precision and accuracy are often used interchangeably in everyday speech, but they have distinct meanings in mathematics. Use this lesson to compare the precision and accuracy of measurements and learn about tolerance.
The number of digits in a measurement is related to the precision of the measurement. Significant digits are those digits of a measurement that contribute to the precision of the measurement. Use this lesson to learn how to identify significant digits and use the correct number of significant digits in reporting the result of a calculation.
The significance of an error in measurement depends on both the accuracy of the measurement and the magnitude of what is being measured. Use this lesson to understand both absolute and relative error and to explore how the relative error is influenced by the accuracy of the measurements being used.
The density of a material is its mass per unit volume. In this lab, you will use what you have learned about precision, accuracy, significant digits, and measurement errors to calculate the density of an object.
An essential idea behind using conversion factors is the concept that when you multiply a measurement by 1, its value is unchanged. Use this lesson to learn how to convert measurements within and between systems, and how to convert derived units (for example, meters per second to miles per hour).
Engage every student in Grades 9–12 with Into Algebra 1, Geometry, and Algebra 2, our core math curriculum that supports learners in developing conceptual understanding and procedural fluency.
This blog, originally published in 2020, has been updated for 2025.
Explore 6 fun math activities for middle school from HMH's GO Math! program. These middle school math games and projects for grades 6-8 will keep your students engaged.
