The International System of Units (SI), commonly known as the metric system, is the international standard for measurement. SI use in product design, manufacturing, marketing, and labeling is essential for United States industry's success in the global marketplace. SI measurement system familiarity and fluency must be developed along the Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, and Mathematics (STEAM) career pipeline to produce an U.S. engineering workforce with this essential 21st century skill.
Become familiar with SI units, develop measurement quantity reference points, and learn more about SI basics! Teachers are encouraged to explore and use these materials to support their STEAM curriculum and classroom measurement science.
Looking for opportunities to expand your International System of Units (SI) subject-matter knowledge and skills? Ongoing opportunities throughout the year are available to fit your schedule. Explore technical training and professional development opportunities offered by the NIST Metric Program. Ideal for pre-service teachers, in-service teachers, and other professionals.
Leader's Guide for Conducting a Metric Usage Seminar (PDF) – This document was created by the U.S. Metric Board with the purpose of providing background and tools to conduct a metric usage seminar based on hands-on learning opportunities for the participants. The seminar consists of background on the metric system, learning metric terms, and practicing making metric measurements. The exercises are designed to help people learn to "think metric" in their daily lives.
Becoming Familiar with SI | Everyday Estimation | Metrication FAQs | Prefixes | Metric Kitchen | SI Education and Training | SI Publications | Understanding Metric | Writing with Metric Units | National Metric Week | NEST-R (STEM Registry) | NIST Education Resources