Understanding Measurement

I read chapter 6: Understanding Children's Understanding of Linear Measurement to Inform Instruction. I thought it was a good article, it reinforced the idea of letting students figure things out on their own.  I liked how they approached 1/2 of a unit by looking at how old the children were. Some of the students were looking at something that was 4 1/2 units long as 5 1/2 units because 5 units were used, but the item only measured 1/2 the last unit. By looking at how old they are the students were able to understand that if they are 6 1/2 then they have not reached 7 yet.