Digital Skills: Developing Online Assessment Skills in Everyday Classroom Activities Western Reserve Public Media
 

Equivalent Fractions
Students will explore making equivalent fractions using on online interactive tool.

 
I can:

I can generate equivalent fractions by using models.

Tech Skills:
  • Drag and Drop

  • Select Objects

Materials and Resources:

Note: If your classroom devices have a QR code reader on them, make QR codes for these websites. Will make going to these websites a little easier.

Grade Level:
  • 3rd Grade

Subject Area:
  • Math

Procedure:

Activity 1

    1. Have students paired with a math partner

    2. Pose the following problem for the students to solve with their math partner using a Turn and Talk. “Jenny had some friends over for her birthday. Her mom brought home a small cheese pizza and a small pepperoni pizza. Jenny shared both pizzas equally with her 3 friends. The cheese pizza was cut into 4 equal slices. The pepperoni pizza was cut into 8 equal slices. What part of the cheese pizza did each person get? What part of the pepperoni pizza did each person get?

    3. After the Turn and Talk, have students share their thoughts with the class. Encourage appropriate Math Talk while discussing the problem letting students come up to the whiteboard to show and explain their thinking.

    4. Tell students that today they are going to practice making equivalent fractions with the website Math Playground. Each student will need to open the Math Playground site.

    5. Demonstrate the interactive fraction bars at the Math Playground site moving the slides back so that the numerators are 0 and the denominators are at 1.

    6. Discuss what the fraction board looks like.

    7. Model how to make the first denominator a 2 so that the top fraction bar shows halves. Model using the slide to divide the second fraction bar into fourth, and the third into eighths.

    8. Ask students if they notice any patterns on the fraction board.

    9. Ask the students to move the slider on their computer making the first numerator 1. They will see that the first fraction bar is now showing “1/2” colored in orange.

    10. Ask the students how they could move the green slider to make a fraction that is equivalent to 1/2.

    11. Ask the students how they know that 1/2 is equal to 2/4.

    12. Repeat this process for eights discussing why these three fractions are equivalent.

    13. Ask students to see if they can figure out how to make a fraction that is equivalent to the other three using the last fraction bar.

    14. Have a student share their solution and discuss as a class. (If you have Reflector or other mirroring software they can project from their computer to whiteboard.

    15. With their math partner students will model equivalent fractions for 1/3, 1/6, and 1/9.

    16. Then they should try and figure out how to make a fraction that is equivalent to the other three using the last fraction bar.

    17. Students share their solutions and discuss as a class.


 

Activity 2

  1. Students will continue to create equivalent fractions using an interactive from Illuminations, on The National Council of Teachers of Mathematics site.

  2. Have students paired with a math partner

  3. Students will open interactive. They will also be completing this practice activity with their math partner.

  4. We will be using the square shape and the Build Your Own category today. Go over the directions with the students explaining that their assignment is to make 2 fractions that will be equivalent to the fraction shown in the red box.

  5. Model how to move the sliders, making the red box show halves and selecting one of the boxes. Point out how the ½ moved on the numberline.

  6. With their partner ask students to find out how to make a different fraction equivalent to ½ in the blue box and a different fraction equivalent to ½ in the green box. They can check their work by selecting the checkmark.

  7. After the students have had a chance to work, ask a few to share their solutions and how they knew whether they were correct or not.

  8. After sharing, the students should continue to use “Build Your Own” for some independent practice using the same interactive. They will need to divide the red box into thirds and color one-third red. Then find two more fractions that are equal to one-third.

  9. Monitor student work. Have student continue to find equivalent fractions for one-fourth, two-thirds, two-fourths and three fourth. Any students having difficulty, will work with the teacher during this independent practice time.

  10. In any remaining time, the students can use the site Balancing Fractions to continue to explore equivalent fractions.

  11. Meet together as a class to review what equivalent fractions are and to name 2 fractions that are equal to one-half.

  12.  Ask the students to complete the Exit Slip on Go Formative. To preview this quiz, you can access it as a teacher. Go to https://goformative.com/code/accept/VJHF947

Standards:

3.NF.A.3a Understand two fractions as equivalent (equal) if they are the same size, or the same point on a number line.

3.NF.A.3b Recognize and generate simple equivalent fractions, e.g., 1/2 = 2/4, 4/6 = 2/3. Explain why the fractions are equivalent, e.g., by using a visual fraction model

MP3 Construct viable arguments and critique the reasoning of others.

MP4 Model with mathematics.

MP5 Use appropriate tools strategically.

MP7 Look for and make use of structure.

MP8 Look for and express regularity in repeated reasoning.

Supplementary Resources:

Additional Resources:

Equivalent fractions-pulley

Sharing Cookies

Intervention:

Video-Identifying Equivalent Fractions

Video-Generate Equivalent Fractions with Models

Math Playground

Equivalent Fractions

Extension:

Matching Equivalent Fractions

Concentration-Equivalent Fractions

Fraction Models

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