This project may seem kind of silly, but it is really very important. It shows us the difference between a lot and a little.

We have several containers, each of which tell us the amounts they can hold, and some of them tell us parts of the amounts they can hold. For example, a measuring cup like Mom uses in the kitchen, has marks on the side the tell us how much liquid we will have if we fill it to the certain line on the side of the cup. About half-way up the side of the cup there is a line that says, "1/2 cup." On the other side of the cup, it may have another line in the same place, that says "4 oz.," which also tells us that four ounces is the same amount as one-half cup.

Let's fill that one-cup measure, and pour the water into the one-quart milk carton. How many times do we have to fill the cup and pour it into the milk carton to fill the carton? That tells us how many cupfuls are in one quart.

Now, we'll get out this huge glass measuring cup. Wow! It is very large! It must hold two quarts of water! Pour the water from the milk carton into it, and see what happens. It's not as huge as we thought, is it? It holds the same amount of liquid as the milk carton. Read the side of the cup. Half-way up the side it says, "2 cups." Near the top it says "4 cups."

Let's fill the baby bottle, and see how much it holds. The top mark says "8 oz." We'll pour it into the small measuring cup, and see if it fits. Yes, it does, because eight ounces is the same amount as one cup.

Measuring is fun!