How many chickens do you weigh? How tall are you in apples or inches or pennies? Can you use your foot as a ruler?
The answers to these and other questions can be explored at Measurement Rules, an interactive exhibit at Creative Discovery Museum through September 13, 2026.
This exhibit was created by Children’s Museum of Pittsburgh and is locally sponsored by Volkswagen Chattanooga.
It might be common to measure using standard tools such as measuring tapes and vessels, but this exhibit will explore some nonstandard ones such as balancing scales, odometers, calipers, 3-D imaging, and counting "Mississippis."
“Measurement Rules invites families to experience math and measurement in ways that feel playful, surprising, and hands-on, creating the kind of shared discovery and joyful learning that makes summer at Creative Discovery Museum so memorable,” says Tim Sears, President and CEO of Creative Discovery Museum.
You can explore concepts of length, time, volume and weight in a variety of ways:
LENGTH
- Height Wall – How tall are you in apples or pennies?
- Treadmill Odometer – Get walking and add to the total yards we'll calculate visitors walked on our treadmill in the exhibit.
- Ball Gauges – Tinker with instruments such as calipers, height gauges and go/no-go gauges. Explore all of the possible ways to measure an ordinary wooden ball. Toss the balls down the chutes to test your findings.
- Giant Tape Measure – Extend a giant tape measure to measure the equally giant fish on our wall mural.
- Foot Ruler – Fit your foot into the gauge to make your foot a unit of measurement then measure yourself in your "feet" and other people's "feet."
TIME
- Five Mississippi – How good is your internal clock? Count to five Mississippi and see how close you come to five actual seconds.
- Ball Stopwatch – Build your own ball ramp and make it faster or slower with modifications.
VOLUME
- See Your Volume – Step before the screen and see yourself built from cubic-inch blocks.
- Bead Table – Little ones can explore volume at an open-ended bead play table.
WEIGHT
- Chicken Scale – Find out how many chickens you weigh.
- Balance Scale – Finesse the right balance between objects and standard weights on a large balance scale.
Plan your next visit and enjoy Measurement Rules at Creative Discovery Museum from May 16 – September 13, 2026. Learn more at cdmfun.org