Fractions and Decimals

          During this week's session, we touched upon some innovative ways in which we as educators can help students understand the concepts of fractions and decimals. 

Mme. Deminion Weekly. (2015). Fraction and Decimal [Online Image]. Retrieved from http://mmedeminion.weebly.com/number-sense-and-numeration.html

          To begin the class, two groups, one of which being my own group, demonstrated a small activity that teachers would be able to use in the classroom. The first group made an activity focused around fractions 

          My partner and I went first and focused on equivalent fractions. This was geared for a grade 4 class first learning about the concept of equivalent fractions. We used a "Folding Paper" method in order to develop a foundation of the concept for the students. Students simply need two pieces of paper. The students fold one piece of paper into the appropriate parts based on looking at the denominator of the first fraction. The students then shade in the appropriate amount of parts based on looking at the numerator. The students then use the other piece of paper to do the same folding action for the other fraction given. Since the pieces of paper represent the same whole piece (a.k.a the same denominator), we shall look to see if the amount of parts shaded are the same. If they are, then the fractions are considered equivalent. Below is an image of our activity.

Pagliaro, T. © 2016.

          For the second demonstration, the group chose to focus their activity on decimals; more specifically place value for a grade 5 class. They used an interactive worksheet in order to make the concept of place value relatable to students. They made use of a piggy bank analogy and saving money in order to get students engaged in the activity. The group also made use of manipulatives, the counting blocks, to give a visual representation for the money being saved. Overall, I believe this was a great interactive activity that a teacher could use in their classroom for this concept. Below is an image of the worksheet the group used.

Pagliaro, T. © 2016.

          Another activity we learned focused around fractions once again. Our instructor demonstrated a great innovative way to make equivalent fractions relatable to students. 

          Instead of using the traditional terminology of finding the lowest common denominator, LCM, she used clocks and time in order to help students understand this concept. In this case, the LCM would be time; 60 to represent the 60 minutes in one hour. The various clocks were then divided into 3 different fractions: 1/4 = 15 minutes, 1/2 = 30 minutes, and 1/3 = 20 minutes. Students will then be able to use these clocks as a foundation to help them understand adding and subtracting using equivalent fractions. In addition, the class also received a different method for teaching the values of different fractions through the use of a folding number line. Every student is given a rectangular piece of paper and then folds the paper into the various parts based on the denominator given; whether it be 4 (into 4 parts), 3 (into 3 parts), etc. These two activities are then put in our interactive notebooks for future reference.  Here are some pictures to help visualize the activities. 

 

Pagliaro, T. © 2016.

Pagliaro, T. © 2016.

           Overall, I believe this week's activities were very educational. I learned a variety of new innovative activities to use in the classroom. Learning fractions and decimals can sometimes be difficult. Therefore, I hope to use these activities in the classroom with future students in order to make these concepts engaging and interactive.