On Monday, Sycamore’s Classroom was transformed into a post office. We took part in the DMAT ‘Maths in the Workplace’ day and applied our maths skills to real-life situations.

Weighing and Measuring Parcels

We used measuring tapes to measure the length, width and height of a range of different sized parcels and letters in centimetres (cm). We also used weighing scales to find the mass of each parcel/letter in grams (g) and kilograms (kg). This information helped us work out how much it would cost to send each parcel using first-class and second-class postage.

Paying for Parcels, Letters and Stamps at the Till

We worked out prices for different customer scenarios, e.g. You need to post parcel A first class and letter C second class or You need to post parcel D and buy 8 2^nd class stamps etc. We used column addition to find the total costs and used coins/notes to pay.

Making a letter size gauge

Using our measuring skills, we made a letter/large letter size gauge that could be used in the post office. We tested some of the letters to see if they were letters or large letters.

Sorting the postbag

We emptied the postbag and ordered post using postcodes, door numbers and a map ready for the delivery round. We worked out the quickest and most efficient route.