Fraction of a Set Using Visuals
Updated: Apr 12
While teaching fractions is not my favorite topic, I have really enjoyed making it come alive for students with my Fraction Cookie Bakery Task. This was a task I used in the classroom and was always a student favorite. Creating it in a performance task with a class is going to be extra special.
I think the most challenging part about fractions is that they seem so abstract. I don't use them much in my every day language, and it can be challenging to visualize them. That's why it's so important students use a variety of visuals when working with fractions like fraction strips, fraction circles and number lines. The ability to be able to see how the whole is divided into equal parts and being able to manipulate and describe those parts will show whether students truly understand fractions.
Of course, this all changes when we change the size of the whole. As students begin using mixed numbers and improper fractions, those fraction materials become quite cumbersome. (Who wants to show 4 7/9 using a ton of fraction materials?!) However, if students have a strong foundation, this can be a smooth transition.
This can also be said for finding the fraction of a set or multiplying a whole number and a fraction. So much of our students' understanding of fractions has been breaking 1 whole into parts. Now all of a sudden a whole can represent several objects that can be grouped into equal parts. We are taking their understanding of division (dividing by the number of groups or the number in each group) and applying this to fractions. All at one time!
Again, it's incredibly important to work with concrete and visual items. We have to let students move around objects, group them and visualize a fraction bar with their materials. When thinking about my course, I wanted to create an activity that would help students do that, and I'm sharing it with you today!
You can grab your FREE download by clicking below. Don't forget to use the two videos that accompany this topic: Using Visuals to Find Fraction of a Set and Finding Fraction of a Set in my video library. Use this videos as an introduction and then have students complete the game for a super easy lesson!