One of those skills is control of space. There are many aspects of that, and one of the first of those is learning to appreciate the distance your sword can reach. If you don't know your own measure you will certainly not be able to understand the measure of other people's reach.
One fun way I teach this is through paper cutting.
It lets you not only work on understanding your own measure, it gives a student the feeling of cutting through a target. I have strong feelings that understanding the feeling of a cut is vital to understanding the more subtle nuances of blade handling.
So, the drill works like this:
Suspend a bit of paper from a rod or pole making sure it is reasonably well attached.
Test your measure with a single step, making sure to just barely brush the surface of the paper with the sword. By the way, Rawlings type nylons are much more suitable than the Pentii types for this particular purpose.
Step back, and take a quick cut at the paper, again being sure to just brush the paper with the tip of the sword, but this time the speed of the sword will be enough to slice through the paper. The cleaner the cut, the better your measure control was.
This is a very good way for new students to work on their measure, and to prepare them for cutting with sharp swords down the line.
