--- title: "Converting measurement units" description: "Convert between different units of measure (e.g. kilometre to metre, hour to minute, minute to second, year to month, week to day)" canonical: https://lightmysky.com/learn/mathematics/converting-measurement-units-mt_d8al9JcajP source: https://lightmysky.com/learn/mathematics/converting-measurement-units-mt_d8al9JcajP.md retrieved: 2026-10-19 --- > **Agent view.** This is the Markdown twin of the page, for tools and assistants. > When to use this site, and the call that answers each job: https://lightmysky.com/agent-instructions.md > API description (OpenAPI 3.1): https://lightmysky.com/openapi.json · Authentication: https://lightmysky.com/auth.md > Pricing: https://lightmysky.com/pricing.md · Catalog: https://lightmysky.com/llms.txt · Full catalog: https://lightmysky.com/llms-full.txt > Every machine-readable file on this domain: https://lightmysky.com/.well-known/ai-catalog.json > Ask for Markdown with `Accept: text/markdown`, a `.md` address, or `?mode=agent`. # Converting measurement units Convert between different units of measure (e.g. kilometre to metre, hour to minute, minute to second, year to month, week to day) Subject: Mathematics · Area: Measurement · Ages 8 to 9 Page: https://lightmysky.com/learn/mathematics/converting-measurement-units-mt_d8al9JcajP ## Ready when they can - Convert 3 km to 3000 m - State 2 hours = 120 minutes - Convert 5 weeks to 35 days ## Lesson: Converting between units Sometimes the same measurement is written using two different units. A distance of 3 kilometres is exactly the same as 3000 metres, just counted in smaller pieces. To convert, you need to know how many small units make one big unit. **Example.** One kilometre equals 1000 metres. To turn 3 km into metres, multiply by 1000: 3 x 1000 = 3000 m. *(drawing: 2 hours is the same as 120 minutes, because each hour has 60 minutes: 2 x 60 = 120.)* **Tip.** Moving to a smaller unit? Multiply. Moving to a bigger unit? Divide. Five weeks is 5 x 7 = 35 days, since each week has 7 days. **Recap.** To convert between units, multiply when the new unit is smaller and divide when the new unit is bigger. ## Practice 16 questions on this page, each with its working shown. ## Needs first - [Calculating with measurements](https://lightmysky.com/learn/mathematics/calculating-with-measurements-mt_6oxQPNLHNv) - [Time Units and Calendar Facts](https://lightmysky.com/learn/mathematics/time-units-and-calendar-facts-mt_EXlmTURK_o) - [Measuring with different units](https://lightmysky.com/learn/mathematics/measuring-with-different-units-mt_jHv4BgRK8B) ## Opens up - [Converting time units](https://lightmysky.com/learn/mathematics/converting-time-units-mt_2yas4Unc8o) - [Modelling with multiplication and fractions](https://lightmysky.com/learn/mathematics/modelling-with-multiplication-and-fractions-mt_K3R0yaHVcx) - [Converting measurement units (age 9+)](https://lightmysky.com/learn/mathematics/converting-measurement-units-age-9-mt_Zks8xyInSG)