Weigh It, Pour It
Weight in kilograms and grams, and capacity in litres and millilitres: estimating, balancing, and everyday measuring.
- Heavier and lighter, and using a pan balance
- 1 kg = 1,000 g, with ½ kg = 500 g and ¼ kg = 250 g
- Choosing kg or g for different things
- 1 litre = 1,000 ml, with ½ l = 500 ml and ¼ l = 250 ml
- Saving water every day
⚖️ Let’s Begin: The Kirana Shop Balance
Babloo watches the shopkeeper put a 1 kg weight on one pan of the balance and pour sugar into the other pan. When the two pans are level, the sugar weighs exactly 1 kg!
If one pan goes down, that side is heavier. If it goes up, that side is lighter.
🧂 Part 1: Kilograms and Grams
We weigh heavy things in kilograms (kg) and light things in grams (g).
1 kg = 1,000 g
| Packets | Weight | As a fraction of 1 kg |
|---|---|---|
| 2 packets of 500 g | 1,000 g = 1 kg | 500 g = ½ kg |
| 4 packets of 250 g | 1,000 g = 1 kg | 250 g = ¼ kg |
| 10 packets of 100 g | 1,000 g = 1 kg | 100 g = 1/10 kg |
| Use kg for | Use g for |
|---|---|
| A sack of rice, a watermelon, a person, a gas cylinder | An eraser, a biscuit packet, a tomato, spices, a letter |
✅ Check by lifting it or putting it on a balance.
🥛 Part 2: Litres and Millilitres
Capacity is how much liquid a container can hold. We use litres (l) and millilitres (ml).
1 l = 1,000 ml
- 2 bottles of 500 ml = 1 l, so 500 ml = ½ l
- 4 glasses of 250 ml = 1 l, so 250 ml = ¼ l
- 10 cups of 100 ml = 1 l
- A medicine spoon holds about 5 ml, and a dosing cup about 10 ml
Example: Amma needs 1 l of milk for kheer but has only a 250 ml cup. How many cups? 1,000 ÷ 250 = 4 cups.
💧 Part 3: Save Every Drop
A dripping tap can waste a bucket of water (over 10 litres) in just one day! Turn off taps tightly, use a bucket instead of a shower, and reuse water from washing vegetables to water plants.
✏️ Practice Time
Try these on your own first, then check your answer below each question.
📘 NCERT Textbook Activity Help
Hints and answers for the activities in the textbook, page by page. Try each one yourself before looking at the answer!
Page 115 · Heaviest to lightestAnimals and the pumpkin
Questions 2–5 depend on your home and bag. You can tell something is heavy by lifting it or weighing it.
Half pumpkin: look at the scales. If the whole pumpkin balances 1 kg, then half the pumpkin is about ½ kg (500 g).
More or less than 1 kg?
Balancing daal packets
Q2: The pan with the heavier load goes down. Draw the arrow towards the heavier side.
Q3: kg → heavy things like a sack of flour, a watermelon, or a child. g → light things like a pencil, an eraser, a biscuit, or a chilli.
10 g erasers and 1 kg kaju katli
Boxes for 1 kg: 500 g → 2 · 250 g → 4 · 100 g → 10 · 50 g → 20
Estimate and match
Match: cat → 3 kg to 5 kg · elephant → more than 1,000 kg · 1 l filled bottle → 800 g to 1,000 g (a bit over 1 kg with a heavy bottle) · tiger → 150 kg to 300 kg · empty gas cylinder → 15 kg · pen → 10 g to 15 g · leaf → 1 g to 5 g · wooden chair → 6 kg to 10 kg
Bottles, cups, and droppers
250 ml in ½ l → 2 · 250 ml in 750 ml → 3 · 100 ml in ½ l → 5 · 100 ml in 800 ml → 8
10 ml cups: 100 ml → 10 · 250 ml → 25 · 500 ml → 50 · 1 l → 100
1 ml droppers in 10 ml → 10. A teaspoon holds about 5 droppers (5 ml).
Honey: about 5 ml (1 spoon) · Cough syrup: 5–10 ml · Cooking oil: 10–30 ml per dish
Perfumed oil for 1 l: 500 ml → 2 · 200 ml → 5 · 100 ml → 10 · 50 ml → 20
Water in daily life
👨👩👧 Tips for Parents
- Read the weights on packets in your kitchen together (500 g, 1 kg).
- Fill a 1 l bottle using a 250 ml glass and count the glasses.
- Do the dripping-tap test at home and talk about saving water.