Student Survive 2 Thrive: practice reading glass thermometer

Step-by-Step Guide to Reading Thermometers - Photo by Zwager at Wikimedia Commons

Reading a glass thermometer is a helpful skill to learn. Although many thermometers now have a digital reading, quite a few people have glass thermometers in their homes, and some facilities use glass thermometers in certain circumstances. Glass thermometers may be invaluable for assessing temperature in areas without easy access to electrical power or batteries.

Below are a few tips for reading a glass thermometer. This is not a complete list of steps for the procedure of taking a temperature but simply focuses on how to read the thermometer. Use standard precautions to protect oneself, obtain informed consent, and provide for privacy.

Shake the liquid in the thermometer down below at least 96 degrees F using a flicking motion of the wrist - stand away from furniture and other hard objects to avoid breaking the thermometer.
Choose an appropriate route (oral, axillary, rectal).
Leave the thermometer in place for the length of time appropriate for the route.
After removing the thermometer, use care not to clean with alcohol before reading it, but wipe it with a tissue instead. (The thermometer should be thoroughly cleaned after recording the number.)
Hold the thermometer at eye level, slowly rolling it between the thumb and forefinger until a colored line appears and focus on where the line stops.
Read the temperature to the closest line and record.

Here is a graphic showing what the lines and numbers on a glass thermometer represent (click on the image to enlarge):

How to Read a Glass Thermometer

Here is an example of how to read a glass thermometer:

Example Showing How to Read a Mercury Thermometer

Practice reading the following thermometers below. The correct answer follows each example.

How to Use the Thermometer Practice Flash Cards:

Click on the first image below to enlarge.
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Readers may also wish to review:

I hope you have found these practice flash cards for reading a glass or mercury thermometer to be helpful! Find more flash cards, practice tests, and tips at the Student Survive 2 Thrive site map.