Measuring Capacity
Remember
- Capacity is the amount of liquid a container can hold.
- Volume is how much liquid is in the container.
We can measure both in millilitres and litres.
Measuring in litres and millilitre
A litre is much more than a millilitre.
1 litre = 1000 millilitres
We shorten litres to ‘l’ and we can shorten millilitres to ‘ml‘.
So we might also say:
1 l = 1000 ml
Practise
Activity 1
What’s left in the house?
Find as many containers in your kitchen as you can that are holding liquids, such as a bottle of milk or squash.
Check how much liquid they hold when they are full (you should be able to find this on the packaging.) Estimate how much liquid is left in each container.
If possible, use a measuring jug for each to check your estimates.
Activity 2
Drinks time
Using a measuring jug, make yourself a drink. For example, you could use the recipe below:
- ½ litre orange juice
- 50 ml cranberry juice
- 200 ml water
- 5 ml lemon juice
Why not adapt this recipe to use the drinks you have at home?
Visit the BBC Bitesize page to see the video on measuring capacity.
