Nicole Dostaler - Fourth Grade - Fractions Unit

Fun with Fractions,
A Grade Four Math Unit
ED569C – Math for Grades 4-6

Fun with Fractions
Unit Plan Summary
Teacher(s) Nicole Dostaler
Grade Level Grade 4
Unit of Study Mathematics – Fractions
Duration of the Unit 5 Lessons
Learning Goal
The Learning Goal(s) for this unit is as follows:
The fourth grade students will—
 recognize fractions and construct unit wholes using various manipulatives,
including geoboards, pattern blocks and fraction strips.
1
 identify and construct equivalent fractions to one-sixteenth ( ) using various
16
manipulatives, including geoboards, pattern blocks and fraction strips.
Summary of the Unit
The students will participate in a unit entitled, “Fun with Fractions”, which is an
introductory group of lessons that builds upon previous student knowledge of fractions and
builds a strong foundation for future experiences. In the one-week series of five lessons,
students will be exploring fractions largely in relationship to the concept of “one whole”.
The students will gain the knowledge and skills necessary to observe, construct and create,
investigate, and communicate their understanding of the presented concepts. They will be
constructing whole units from given fractions and breaking down whole units into fractions.
They will work with story problems, begin practice in writing addition fraction number
sentences, find equivalent fractions, and build their understanding and recognition of ½ and
¼. Their experiences will be very concrete and grow more abstract as they utilize a wide-
range of manipulatives, such as fraction strips, geoboards, and pattern blocks, to support
their understanding of fractional concepts.
Summary of the Lessons
Lesson 1: Problem Solving Fractions
Objective: The fourth grade students will be able to visually and numerically
1
represent fractions to one-eighth ( ) using problem solving strategies and fraction pies.
8
In this lesson, students will explore the concept of sharing equally and fairly to
review their knowledge of fractions. Students will learn how to divide objects (example:
slices of pie, pizza, cake, etc.) between individuals using fraction pie manipulatives.
They relate sharing portions of these objects to numeral fraction values after reviewing
the vocabulary terms: numerator and denominator. The students complete a
performance task where they use problem solving strategies to answer a fractional story
problem, draw a picture, and explain how they received their answer. The students will
be assessed by a formative 3-point rubric in the areas of problem solving,
communication/visual representation, reasoning, connections, and number sense.
Lesson 2: Exploring and Adding Equivalent Fractions
Objective: The fourth grade students will be recognize equivalent fractions to one
whole by writing corresponding addition number sentences using fraction strips to the
1
one-sixteenth ( ).
16
In this lesson, students will be creating their own fraction strip manipulatives to
learn about equivalent fractions. Students recognize that strips divided into a different
numbers of parts can represent the same whole. They explore which size fractions are
1
similar and different from one another from 1 to . Students work to find various
16
1
combinations of smaller fraction strips that “cover” up their one whole (1 or ) fraction
1
strip. They write these findings on their recording sheet in the form of related addition
number sentences. The students will be assessed by the teacher during their exploration
by the use of an informal formative observational checklist in the areas of problem
solving, representation, connections, and number sense.
Lesson 3: Pattern Block Fractions
Objective: The fourth grade students will be recognize and generate equivalent
fractions using pattern blocks, while understanding that different models can show one
whole.
In this lesson, students will explore the concept “one whole” and equivalent
fractions. Students learn that different shapes can be considered “one whole” and
explore how different fractions can name the same amount. They will represent
fractions visually using pattern blocks. Using a model other than fraction strips helps
students realize that any shape can be a “whole”. The students will complete a
performance task game with a partner where they use pattern blocks to represent rolls of
a fraction cube in relationship to a provided whole shape. The students will be assessed
by a formative 3-point rubric to determine whether they meet or exceed the objectives
of the task, partially meet the objectives of the task, or do not meet the objectives of the
task. The students are expected to properly tally their game play, accurately draw their
pattern blocks, demonstrate recognition of specific fractions, and explain their
understanding of equivalent fractions.
Lesson 4: Visualizing Halves and Fourths
Objective: The fourth grade students will construct different regions to demonstrate
1 1
one-half ( ) or one-fourth ( ) and construct the whole unit when given a region
2 4
1 1
representing one- half ( ¿ or one-fourth ( ) with the use of geoboards.
2 4
In this lesson, students will explore the concept halves and fourths as they explore
dividing (portioning) and constructing whole units. Students will integrate fractions,
measurement, and geometry during this investigation. As students experiment with
finding different ways to show halves and fourths of shapes, they think visually and
explore the idea that different shapes can cover the same area. The students will create
and divide shapes using geoboards. The students will complete a self-assessment to
make them responsible for completing the performance task sheet, create their fractional
quilt squares, and explain their understandings or misunderstandings faced during this
investigation.
Lesson 5: Summing up Fractions

Objective: The fourth grade students will recognize and construct unit wholes and
1
equivalent fractions to one-sixteenth ( ) using manipulatives, including geoboards,
16
pattern blocks and fraction strips.
In this lesson, students will be review and be assessed on their understanding of
fractions, “one whole”, and equivalent fractions. Students will complete a carousel
brainstorming activity to organize and summarize their knowledge on the concepts of
“Fractions”, “Whole”, and “Equivalent”. During the performance task, the students will
work in a variety of centers that utilize geoboard, fraction strip, and pattern block
manipulatives as they complete a “Summing Up Fractions” Recording Packet. Students
will explore and apply their knowledge of the units’ concepts by constructing them out
of the manipulatives and recording their findings and explanations in the packet. The
students will be assessed by an observational performance rubric for their behaviors
during the task, as well as by a summative scoring tool of a corrected “Summing Up
Fractions” Recording Packet. This scoring tool is a copy of the original packet, but
provides the correct potential answers for the teacher to use as a reference to evaluate
the students’ responses. They will receive a score out of 45 points. They should receive
a score above 34 to be considered as meeting the goals for the unit. Students can receive
11 points in Center A with pattern blocks, 6 points in Center B utilizing geoboards, 10
points in Center C as they explore fractional notation, and 18 points in Center D using
fraction strips.
Content Standards
National Standards (NCTM, 2002, p. 148)

 In grades 3-5, students should develop understanding of fractions as parts of
unit wholes, as parts of a collection, as locations on number lines, and as
divisions of whole numbers; use models, benchmarks, and equivalent forms to
judge the size of fractions; and recognize and generate equivalent forms of
commonly used fractions.
 In grades 3-5, students should create and use representations to organize,
record, and communicate mathematical ideas; select, apply, and translate
among mathematical representations to solve problems; and use
representations to model and interpret physical, social, and mathematical
phenomena.
Connecticut State Standards (CT State Department of Education, 2010, p. 32-35)
 1.3 Use operations, properties and algebraic symbols to determine
equivalence and solve problems.
o GLE4. Represent possible values by using symbols (variables) to
represent quantities in expressions and number sentences. Use
number sentences (equations) to model and solve word problems.
 2.1 Understand that a variety of numerical representations can be used to
describe quantitative relationships.
o GLE7. Construct and use pictures and models to determine and
identify equivalent ratios and fractions.
o GLE8. Locate, label and estimate (round) fractions with like and
unlike denominators of two, three, four, five, six, eight and ten by
constructing and using models, pictures and number lines.

o GLE9. Construct and use models, pictures and number lines to
compare and order fractional parts of a whole and mixed numbers
with like and unlike denominators of two, three, four, five, six, eight
and ten.
o GLE10. Construct and use models, pictures and number lines to
identify wholes and parts of a whole, including a part of a group or
groups, as simple fractions and mixed numbers.
 2.2 Use numbers and their properties to compute flexibly and fluently, and
to reasonably estimate measures and quantities.
o GLE20. Use models and pictures to add and subtract fractions with
like and unlike denominators of two, three, four, five, six, eight and
ten and match number sentences or equations to the problems.
o GLE21. Identify or write number sentences to solve simple
problems involving fractions, decimals (tenths) and mixed numbers
o GLE22. Write contextual problems involving the addition and
subtraction of fractions with like denominators, decimals (tenths)
and mixed numbers; solve the problems and justify the solutions.
o GLE23. Estimate a reasonable answer to simple problems involving
fractions, mixed numbers and decimals (tenths).
Process Skills (NCTM, 2002, pp. 182, 188, 194, 195, 200, 280)
 Instructional programs from grades 3-5 should enable all students to—
o Problem Solving
 Build new mathematical knowledge through problem solving

 Solve problems that arise in mathematics and in other contexts
 Apply and adapt a variety of appropriate strategies to solve problems
 Monitor and reflect on the process of mathematical problem solving
o Reasoning and Proof
 Recognize reasoning and proof as fundamental aspects of mathematics
 Make and investigate mathematical conjectures
 Select and use various types of reasoning and methods of proof
o Communication
 Organize and consolidate their mathematical thinking through
communication
 Communicate their mathematical thinking coherently and clearly to peers,
teachers, and others
 Analyze and evaluate the mathematical thinking and strategies of others
 Use the language of mathematics to express mathematical ideas precisely
o Connections
 Recognize and use connections among mathematical ideas
 Understand how mathematical ideas interconnect and build on one another
to produce a coherent whole
 Recognize and apply mathematics in contexts outside of mathematics
o Representation
 Create and use representations to organize, record, and communicate
mathematical ideas
 Select, apply, and translate among mathematical representations to solve
problems
 Use representations to model and interpret physical, social, and
mathematical phenomena
References:
Connecticut State Department of Education. (2010). Connecticut Prekindergarten—Grade 8

Mathematics Curriculum Standards. Hartford, CT: Bureau of Curriculum & Instruction.
<http://www.sde.ct.gov/sde/lib/sde/pdf/curriculum/math/PK8_MathStandards_GLES
_Mar10.pdf>.
NCTM (2002). Reflecting on Principles & Standards in Elementary and Middle School
Mathematics, Readings from NCTM’s School-Based Journals. (2002). Reston, VA: The
National Council of Teachers of Mathematics, Inc.
<http://nctm.org/standards/content.aspx?id=3182>.
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Master of Arts in Teaching Program
Division of Education
Quinnipiac University
PROBLEM SOLVING FRACTIONS
Student Teacher Nicole Dostaler

th
Grade/Subject 4 Grade/Mathematics – Problem Solving/Fractions Date of Lesson November 2010
Content Standards:
 In grades 3-5, students should develop understanding of fractions as parts of unit wholes, as
parts of a collection, as locations on number lines, and as divisions of whole numbers; use
models, benchmarks, and equivalent forms to judge the size of fractions; and recognize and
generate equivalent forms of commonly used fractions. (NCTM, 2002, p. 148)
 In grades 3-5, students should create and use representations to organize, record, and
communicate mathematical ideas; select, apply, and translate among mathematical
representations to solve problems; and use representations to model and interpret physical,
social, and mathematical phenomena. (NCTM, 2002, p. 148)
 1.3 Use operations, properties and algebraic symbols to determine equivalence and solve
problems. (CT Department of Education, 2010, p. 32)
 2.1 Understand that a variety of numerical representations can be used to describe quantitative
relationships. (CT Department of Education, 2010, p. 33-34)
o GLE10. Construct and use models, pictures and number lines to identify wholes and
parts of a whole, including a part of a group or groups, as simple fractions and mixed
numbers.
 2.2 Use numbers and their properties to compute flexibly and fluently, and to reasonably
estimate measures and quantities. (CT Department of Education, 2010, p. 34-35)
o GLE21. Identify or write number sentences to solve simple problems involving
fractions, decimals (tenths) and mixed numbers.

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Learner Background:
 The third grade students:
o Understand the vocabulary terms: “whole”, “half”, “share”, “evenly”, “equivalent”, &
“equal”.
o May have previously heard the terms: “numerator” and “denominator”.
o Know how to accurately use addition and subtraction of one-digit whole numbers.
o Know how to divide a whole object into half from previous grade levels, and will get more
practice in this lesson for students who may have struggled or need a review of the concept.
o Know how to divide a set of objects evenly using whole numbers from previous grade levels.
o Know how to solve story problems.
o Have experience using mathematics manipulatives, including fraction pies in previous grades.
o Have experience devising reasonable estimates.
o Have experience with fractions in previous grade levels, including part-whole or part-set.
o May have previous experience with division, but is not necessary for success in this lesson.
Student Learning Objectives(s): The fourth grade students will be able to visually and numerically
1
represent fractions to one-eighth ( ) using problem solving strategies and fraction pies.
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Assessment: The teacher will evaluate the students’ “Sharing a Pizza” Task Sheet in accordance with
the attached rubric for problem solving, communication/visual representation, reasoning,
mathematical connections, and number sense. The students’ task sheets should state the method they
used, that they applied this use to solve the story problem and explained how they solved using this
strategy, which had the ability to result in a majority of accurate answers. The students should have
represented these amounts with numbers, drawn a picture to make a visual representation, and labeled
the aspects of the picture with words. Lastly, the students should have answered the questions at the
bottom of the task sheet using the information and data they found in their representations. In doing
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this task sheet, the students would be able to see the numerical and visual connection between fraction
concepts. (See the assessment section at the end of the lesson plan.)
Materials/Resources:
 Scrap Paper (One sheet for each student.)
 Stack of six papers (or other items) for the initiation
 Pencils (One for each student.)
 “Sharing a Pizza” Task Sheet (One for each student.)
 Paper circles for manipulative use
1 1 1
 Fraction pies ( , , and )
2 4 8
 Scissors
 Pizza Fractions 3-Point Rubric
Learning Activities:
Initiation:
o Ask the students: “What is sharing?”
o “When we share, we take a part of the whole group we have and give a part of it to others.
For example, if I wanted to share my six papers with you. I could give a piece to you and you
and you. (Demonstrate this by passing out some of the papers to the three students. Keep
three for yourself.) How many pieces of paper does each of you have? (One.) I have three. “
o “What would I have to do if I wanted to share all of my paper with them? How could I fairly
share them with these friends so they each have the same amount of paper and I have none?”
o “Today, we are going to learn how to evenly and fairly share objects with our friends. We
are going to determine how to separate what we have and share them between everyone in the
group equally. We are going to find various ways to represent what we are thinking and
write about what we thought about when we shared.”
Lesson Development:
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 Whole class/Partnered instructional grouping
o Choose four students to stand at the front of the room. “What would happen if I went to a
bakery to get some desserts and I bought a pie? I want to give all four of my friends here
some of the pie. How do you think I could do that?” Ask the students to share some of their
responses.
o After responses are shared, use physical manipulatives and scissors (paper circles) to
represent the pie. Act out some of the students’ solutions by passing them out to the actors.
o Address any responses that say that to simply cut them out any sized piece. Explain that we
have to share the entire pie evenly and fairly between them all so there is no pie left over.
What could we do to make this happen?
o Physically cut the manipulative into fourths. “How many pieces do we have? How many
friends do we have? Are there any leftover pie slices if we pass them out to each friend? Are
there any friends without this piece of the pie?” Physically hand out the pieces to each student
and have the students hold them so they are visible.
o “How many pie slices does each friend have?” Have students hold up their pieces. Count
each piece each student has to check with the whole class. “Does each friend have the same
amount of the pie? Now that everyone has the same amount, we have shared with them
evenly. When we divide the pie between each person, they need to be EQUAL and that
means to have the SAME amount each.”
o Tell the students that fractions have two parts: A numerator and denominator. “The
numerator is the number on top, and the denominator is the number on the bottom. If you
remember that the ‘d’ stands for "down," it can help you which one the denominator is.”
o “How many pieces our pie was cut into. Show me by holding up the correct number of
fingers.” Look to make sure each student is holding up four fingers.

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o Draw the circle model of the circle divided into four sections on the board, and then write the
number four as the denominator. Explain that this number tells how many parts are in the
whole. In this case, how many parts the circle is made up of.
o Explain that the top number of a fraction, or numerator, tells you how many parts are left in
the whole after some are removed. Take away one section of the fraction pie drawn on the
board. Write the number 3 on top of the fraction. Tell the students that in this pie, there are
3
only of it left. Review the fractions for each portion of the circle as pieces are removed
4
4
one by one and that is the same as 1 because there is one whole pie.
4
 Model:
o “Now, I went the bakery and bought a chocolate cake for dessert. This cake was already cut
at the store and has eight slices. I have four people coming to my party. How many slices of
pie would we all get to eat if I do not want any leftovers?”
o Use the think aloud strategy to explain what I am thinking to the students by speaking out
loud. This is helpful to organize thoughts so then students can see how it relates to the
written explanation of the answer.
1
o Model using the manipulative fraction pies. Use students to represent the people coming to
8
the party and demonstrate to the class how to distribute the pieces of cake to each of the
people coming to the party. How many pieces would each person get? What fraction is this
if I wrote this with numbers?
o Draw the objects on the board in a visual representation of the physical manipulatives.
o Write about my thinking and why I chose to “share” in this way on the board. Use full
sentences and proper grammatical structure.

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o Repeat with another example (2 pizzas with 8 slices and 4 guests or 1 cake with 6 slices and 3
guests, etc.) and draw the pictorial representation on the board. Show how the shapes are
represented by the symbol numeral amounts.
o Ask the students if there are any other ways they can represent the sharing.
 Guided Practice:
o Pass out scrap paper and one set of fraction pie manipulatives to the students.
o Do another example with the students where the result will cause the students to receive
fourths in their fraction responses. (Example: 2 pies and 8 people)
o “How could I split these two pies between eight friends so that I have no leftovers and
everyone gets one piece of pie?”
o Have students work on scrap paper drawing pictures and writing responses as they work
alongside the teacher’s examples on the board to practice before the independent practice.
o Model drawing the objects in a visual representation on the board. Have the students guide
what you are drawing.
o Allow students to share their responses on how they solved how many objects to share. Write
three to four student responses on the board verbatim to show how students will write about
their thinking on their task sheets.
 Independent Practice: Individual instructional grouping – Students working alone at desks
o Pass out the “Sharing a Pizza” Task Sheet to students, along with scrap work paper and more
circle manipulatives.
o Read the open-ended question to the students, “For dinner, you went to a pizzeria with three
friends. You are going to order a large pizza with eight slices. Two of your friends want
cheese pizza, one of your friends wants pepperoni, and you want sausage on it. How many
slices of the pizza will have each topping?

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o Explain to the students that they will have to determine how pieces have each topping of the
pizza will have. Using the information they find, they will have to answer the two questions at
the bottom of the paper and state how many slices each topping has and what the fraction is.
o In the box, explain that they will have to show how they got their answer. This could be a
drawing that includes both pictures and numbers to show their thinking. It could show
another visual representation or a mathematics equation.
o Under the box, explain to the students that they will write about how they divided up the
pizza toppings. They need to write in full sentences to explain their thinking.
o Allow students to use physical manipulatives to represent the pizza slices as they problem
solve. Explain that they will have to represent what they physically do with the
manipulatives in their picture in the box if used.
o As students work, walk around and assist any students that have questions or difficulties.
o When students are finished, invite some students to share their answers, display their pictures
they drew, and explain the reasoning behind their answers to the class. Compare results and
explanations between students.
o Collect their task sheets and assess their understanding of the concept according to the rubric.
Closure:
o “Now that you all are finished with your task sheets, I want to review what we accomplished
today. In the lesson, we learned how to evenly share objects. Who can tell me what sharing
is? Who can tell me how we evenly shared when there were not enough whole items to be
given to each person? (‘We had to cut them into pieces/halves/fourths/eights, etc.’) How do
we write this when we use numbers? Why is it important that we share evenly? You all did a
great job today counting, dividing and sharing the different items we bought with friends!”
Differentiated Instruction:
 Tyler
Identified Instructional Need: Tyler typically can be found completing his mathematics work
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earlier than the rest of the students because of his advanced understanding of the material. He
has a distinct ability to grasp the concepts quickly and is able to apply them to his class work.
Differentiation Strategy: Tyler may be asked to create his own story problem for the classmates
to solve that would result in a fractional answer. He would be provided with a blank version of
the task sheet the other students are using where he would have to show his thinking and his
answers, including how others would go about solving his story problem.
 Michelle
Identified Instructional Need: Michelle has a hearing impairment that fluctuates in severity.
Differentiation Strategy: Michelle is slightly below grade level with her mathematics ability and
seems to demonstrate the ability to meet grade level expectations with more focused instruction.
Differentiation should help improve her skills. Michelle will have hearing support by the use of a
microphone that I will wear, so that she can hear me at a higher level in her hearing aids. She also
sits near the front of the classroom. The visual demonstration of the lesson on the board
(equations, pictorial representations, etc.) will assist Michelle in understanding the concept being
taught. The presented fractions and manipulatives will be written/drawn on the board or on an
individualized task sheet for her to see, in order to ensure that she knows what the class is
working on. She can also ask her math partner for support and explanation during class
instruction. She will be pulled into a small work group with other students that need to improve
certain mathematical concepts.
References:

_Mar10.pdf>.
NCTM (2002). Reflecting on Principles & Standards in Elementary and Middle School Mathematics,
Readings from NCTM’s School-Based Journals. (2002). Reston, VA: The National Council of
Teachers of Mathematics, Inc. <http://nctm.org/standards/content.aspx?id=3182>.
Name: ____________________ Pizza Fractions Rubric Date:
____________
Objective: The fourth grade students will be able to visually and numerically represent fractions to
1
one-eighth ( ) using problem solving strategies and fraction pies.
8
Low Medium High
Competency Competency Competency
1 2 3
Student showed great Student had a partially
Student had a correct
difficulty (or no correct plan based on
plan to solve the
attempt) determining some use of
problem that utilized
how to solve the sharing/dividing equally
Problem Solving problem or used poor concepts. There may be
sharing/dividing equally
concepts, which could
planning, which some small errors that
lead to an accurate
resulted in an inaccurate resulted in an
answer.
answer. inaccuracy.
Student did not explain Student explained ideas
Student explained ideas
Communication/ using words, pictures, only using some words,
using words, pictures,
or numbers. They may pictures, or numbers.
Visual have shown There may be some
& numbers. Drawings
Representation are clear and accurately
representations with small errors in the
represent their answer.
great inaccuracies. representation.
Student provides no
Student provides an Student provides
explanation of their
explanation about the accurate, insightful
reasoning about how
way they split up the and/or creative
Reasoning they split up the pizza.
pizza as well as some explanation about the
There may also be
justification of their justification behind
evidence of gross
reasoning. their reasoning.
misunderstanding.
Student shows accurate
Student shows some
Student shows little to evidence of numerical
evidence of numerical
no evidence of computation and
Connections numerical computation
computation, but there
integrates the
may be some minor
or there are great errors. connection in their
flaws.
representation.
Students showed great
Student shows use of
difficulty using fraction Student shows
fraction and whole
and whole number insightful and/or
number understanding.
Number Sense concepts. Student may
There may be some
creative use of fraction
use inappropriate and whole number
minor flaws in
number concepts to understanding.
application.
answer the question.
Assessment:
Name: ____________________ Pizza Fractions Rubric Date: _
_11/8/10______
Objective: The fourth grade students will be able to visually and numerically represent fractions to
1
one-eight ( ) using problem solving strategies and fraction pies.
8
Low Medium High
Competency Competency Competency
1 2 3
Student showed great
Student had a partially
difficulty (or no Student had a correct
correct plan based on
attempt) determining plan to solve the
some use of fractional
how to solve the problem that utilized
Problem Solving problem or used poor
concepts. There may be
fractional concepts,
some small errors that
planning, which which could lead to an
resulted in an
resulted in an inaccurate accurate answer.
inaccuracy.
answer.
Student did not explain Student explained ideas Student explained ideas
Communication/ using words, pictures, only using some words, in the box using words,
or numbers. They may pictures, or numbers in pictures, & numbers.
Visual have shown the box. There may be Drawings are clear and
Representation representations with some small errors in the accurately represent
great inaccuracies. representation. their answer.
Student provides no
Student provides an Student provides
explanation of their
explanation about the accurate, insightful
reasoning about how
way they split up the and/or creative
Reasoning they split up the pizza.
pizza, as well as some explanation about the
There may also be
justification of their justification behind
evidence of gross
reasoning. their reasoning.
misunderstanding.
Student shows accurate
Student shows some
Student shows little to evidence of numerical
evidence of numerical
no evidence of computation and
Connections numerical computation
computation, but there
integrates the
may be some minor
or there are great errors. connection in their
flaws.
representation.
Students showed great
Student shows use of
difficulty using fraction Student shows
fraction and whole
and whole number insightful and/or
number understanding.
Number Sense concepts. Student may
There may be some
creative use of fraction
use inappropriate and whole number
minor flaws in
number concepts to understanding.
application.
answer the question.
Example of completed rubric:

Name: ___________________________________________ Date: __________________________
Sharing a Pizza
For dinner, you went to a pizzeria with three friends. You are going to order a large
pizza with eight slices. Two of your friends want cheese pizza, one of your friends
wants pepperoni, and you want sausage on it. How many slices of the pizza will have
each topping?
What will you do to solve it? _______________________________________________
Show how you got your answer.
Explain what you did and what you noticed that helped you find the answer.
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
How many slices will each topping have? ___________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
What fraction of the pizza is each topping? __________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
Example of
completed task
sheet:
Sausage Name:
_______Madison____
Cheese __________________
_____ Date:
Pepperoni
_____November
8__________
Sharing a Pizza
For dinner, you

went to a pizzeria with three friends. You are going to order a large pizza with eight
slices. Two of your friends want cheese pizza, one of your friends wants pepperoni, and
you want sausage on it. How many slices of the pizza will have each topping?
What will you do to solve it? __I will make a drawing.___________________________
Show how you got your answer.
2 4
Explain what you did and what you noticed that helped you find the answer.
I drew a circle with eight slices on it, since that’s how many slices it said it had. Then I colored in one
slice of what topping everyone wanted. I saw there was four slices left, so I did that again and the pizza
was full!________________________________
How many slices will each topping have? _______Cheese will have 4 slices. Pepperoni will
have 2 slices and sausage will have 2 slices._____________________________________
4 2 2
What fraction of the pizza is each topping? ___Cheese is 8 . Sausage is 8 and pepperoni is 8 .
___________________________________________________________
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EXPLORING & ADDING EQUVALENT FRACTIONS

th
Grade/Subject 4 Grade/Mathematics – Fractions Date of Lesson November 2010
Content Standards:
 1.3 Use operations, properties and algebraic symbols to determine equivalence and solve
problems. (CT Department of Education, 2010, p. 32)
o GLE4. Represent possible values by using symbols (variables) to represent quantities
in expressions and number sentences.
o GLE7. Construct and use number lines, pictures and models to determine and identify
equivalent ratios and fractions.
o GLE9. Construct and use models, pictures and number lines to compare and order
fractional parts of a whole with like and unlike denominators of two, three, four, five,
six, eight and ten.

Dostaler 29
parts of a whole, including a part of a group or groups, as simple fractions.
o GLE20. Use models and pictures to add and subtract fractions with like denominators of
two, three, four, five, six, eight and ten.
Learner Background:
 The fourth grade students:
o Understand the vocabulary terms: “numerator”, “denominator”, and “equivalent”.
o Know how to add whole numbers.
o Have experience using mathematics manipulatives, such as Unifix cubes and Cuisenaire
rods, which assisted in comparing lengths.
o Have experience working with linear fraction models largely in previous grade levels.
o Have experience working with symbolic forms of fractions largely in previous grade
levels, but several need more practice with this concept and will receive it in the lesson.
o Have experience representing quantities that have the same value with an equal sign.
1
o Have some previous experience working with fractions to the , but largely in non-
16
standard formats.
o Have some previous experience with addition of fractions in previous grade levels, but
the majority of the students have not vast formal experience within a classroom.
Student Learning Objectives(s): The fourth grade students will be recognize equivalent fractions to
one whole by writing corresponding addition number sentences using fraction strips to the one-
1
sixteenth ( ).
16
Dostaler 30
Assessment: The teacher will evaluate the students using informal observations as they are working.
The teacher will score the students on an observational checklist for problem solving, number sense,
mathematical connections, and representations. On the recording sheet, the students must write an
addition sentence using fractions that equal one. The student should have first demonstrated the
addition sentence in a physical representation by using their fraction strips. They should compare their
strips to the “whole” strip to verify their answers. Lastly, they should have symbolically written the
fraction amounts in the correct box as an addition sentence, which should usually result in the
accurate answer. They should attempt to not repeat any combination of addition statements. In doing
this task sheet, the students would be able to see the numerical and visual connection between fraction
strips and the symbolic representation of their addition sentence. The teacher will observe the
students completing this task by walking around and possibly conferencing with several students
throughout the independent practice. The teacher will check off and make notes on the skills that they
see the students’ representing. The students should master at least two of these categories during this
lesson. (See the assessment section at the end of the lesson plan.)
 3” x 18” Strips of paper in red, navy, light blue, brown and purple. (One strip of each color for
each student.)
 Scissors (One for each student.)
 Envelope (One for each student.)
 “Make a One” Recording Sheet (One for each student.)
 Markers
 Pack of gum with 5 strips inside
 Observational Checklist
Initiation: Whole class instructional grouping

Dostaler 31
o Bring a pack of gum. Ask the students: “What is this that I am holding up?” (“A pack of
gum!”) “How many packs of gum do I have? (“One!”)
o “This pack of gum is made up of 5 strips of gum inside.” Take out the pieces one by one and
count them out loud. “These 5 strips make up the 1 pack of gum. If I eat a piece of gum, I
1
can write a fraction that shows what part of the 5-pack of gum that I chewed.” Write on
5
the board.
o Ask the students: “What do you think the six refers to? What do you think the one stands
for? Why does this mathematical notation make sense? What could I write to show the
fractional part of the rest of the 5-pack that I didn’t chew yet?” Take student responses and
write related explanations on the board.
2 3 4 5
o Continue through the pack of gum reviewing the concepts of , , , and .Be sure to note
5 5 5 5
5
that the whole pack of gum is represented by .
5
o “Today, we are going be working with fractions. We will each be creating our own set of
fraction strips out of paper to use when we work with them. They will help us visually
represent one-whole in a variety of ways. It is important that we understand fractions
because we interact with them every day…just like you saw with the pack of gum or even
when we want to share our food with a friend. We will use the strips we make to explore
creating addition number sentences of our fractions. We will write all of the different ways
we can make a one on a task sheet that I will pass out to you all later in the lesson. First,
we’re going to have some fun folding and cutting paper to make our fraction sets.”
Lesson Development:
 Whole class instructional grouping
o Pass out a series of paper strips to each student so they all have one of each color. Provide
each student with a marker and a pair of scissors.

Dostaler 32
o Walk the students through the steps to fold, cut, and label each strip properly. Model each
step:
1 1
 “On the navy strip, write . If this strip is staying whole, why do we write ? What
1 1
does the 1 on top represent?” (“Numerator: This top number counts. It tells how
many parts we have in our portion.”) “What does the bottom 1 represent?”
(“Denominator: The bottom number tells us what is being counted. It tells us how big
the part is.”)
1
 “On the red strip, fold it in half perfectly. Cut on that fold. On each piece write .
2
The whole strip has been divided into two pieces of the same size. Each piece is one
of the two pieces. The 1 on top represents that right now I am holding one of the two
pieces total. The 2 on the bottom represents the total number of red pieces.
 “With the light blue strip, fold it in half perfectly. Cut on that fold. Now take each of
the two pieces and fold them in half perfectly. Cut on those folds. How many pieces
1
do you have now?” (“Four!”) “On each piece, write . Right now, I am holding up
4
one of the pieces, so the 1 is on top. However, there are 4 of the pink pieces in total
and causes us to put the 4 on the bottom.”
 “With the brown strip, fold it in half perfectly. Cut on that fold. Now take each of the
two pieces and fold them in half perfectly. Cut on those folds. Take each of the four
pieces and fold them in half. Cut on their folds. How many pieces do I now have?
(“Eight.”) “What do you think we will write on each of these pieces? ( {1} over {8} )
“What does the top number represent? What number will we write on the bottom?”
(“An eight because there are eight pieces of brown paper total!”)
 “With the purple strip, fold it in half perfectly. Cut on that fold. Now take each of the
two pieces and fold them in half perfectly. Cut on those folds. Take each of the four
Dostaler 33
pieces and fold them in half. Cut on their folds. Now, you need to take each of the
eight pieces, fold them in half evenly and cut on their folds! Phew! How many
pieces do I now discover?” (“Sixteen.”) “What do you think we will write on each of
these pieces?” ( {1} over {16} )“Do you see a pattern? What does the top number
represent? What number will we write on the bottom?” (“A sixteen because there are
sixteen equal pieces of purple paper total!”)
o “I’d like you to now label the backs of all of your pieces with your initials so we don’t lose
any of the pieces.” Write your name on the back of some to model for the students. “We
need to be careful and keep all of our pieces together. I will give you all an envelope at the
end of the lesson to store your fraction strips in.
o “Can you all line up your strips on your desk? I’d like the whole strip on the top and next
the ½ strip underneath that, so on and so forth.”
o Ask the students: “What do you notice about the pieces?” (Possible answers include: The
pieces get smaller and smaller. Each piece is half of the one before it. The strips are the
same length.)
o Provide some students with some time just to explore with their new fraction strips.
 Model
o “First, I’d like all of your eyes up here, while you watch me demonstrate how to work with
our fraction strips. Like I said previously, today we are going to find as many ways as we can
1
to make a one. To do this, I am going to take my strip. This strip represents one whole.
1
We will place our smaller fraction strips on this strip to see what combinations we can use to
fill it up.” (If magnetic fraction strips are available, utilize these manipulatives on the board.)
o Use the think aloud strategy to explain thoughts on how to find one way to fill the strip up
1 1 1
with other strips. Take the and strips and lay them over the strip for the students.
2 2 1
Dostaler 34
1 1 1
Show them how these two strips completely cover the strip. “I know that and make
1 2 2
1
one because my strip is completely covered evenly. There are no extras over hanging it.”
1
o Model using the manipulatives. Move them around and project them onto a larger screen if
possible so that all the students can see.
o Show how the shapes are represented by the symbol numeral amounts written on them.
1 1 1 1 1
“Since I know that and make , which means 1, I can write that as + = 1.”
2 2 1 2 2
o Pass around the “Make a One” Task Sheet for the students to write the equation upon.
 Guided Practice
o “I’d like you all to try to work with your fraction strips and make a one with me. Can you all
1 1
take your strips and line them up over your strip?” Walk around to observe the students
2 1
lining the strips up properly.
o Ask the students: “How can we verify that our strips are the same size? What do we know
about them before we made our fraction set?”
1
o Have students work with the fraction strips to uncover a new way to cover the strip.
1
1 1
Prompt the students to explore using only the strips. Ask the students: “How many
4 4
1
strips do you think it will take to cover up the ?”
1
Dostaler 35
1
o Model doing this for the students, preferably using an overhead projection. “How many
4
1
strips do you see lying on top of my strip? Were your answers correct? Why/why not?”
1
1 1
o Have students come up to the board to write for every strip that is present lying on their
4 1
1 1 1 1 1
strip. “We know that and and and make or 1. They are the same amount. We
4 4 4 4 1
1
have four of the strips on our 1 strip. What can we write then to make an addition
4
1 1 1 1
sentence, like the one I made previously?” (“ + + + = 1”)
4 4 4 4
o Hold a discussion to clarify any misunderstandings or difficulties some students may have.
 Independent Practice
o Explain to the students that they will have to continue filling in the rest of the boxes on the
task sheet with addition sentences that use fractions that equal one. They must not repeat the
same addition sentence, but in a different order. Every box must be filled in with a new
sentence. If they want to find more, they can write other equations on the back of the paper.
1 1
o Remind students that they can mix and match strips. For example, they can use a strip, a
2 4
1
strip, and two strips to make a one.
8
o Allow students to use their fraction strips to represent the problems they are solving. Explain
that they have to represent what they physically do with the manipulatives by writing the
equivalent numeric sentence in the box.
o As students work, walk around and assist any students that have questions or difficulties. Use
the observational checklist to judge that each student is meeting the criteria for problem
Dostaler 36
solving, number sense, mathematical connections, and representation. Check off the category
that the children are completing when it is seen.
o When students are finished, invite some students to share their number sentences on the board
and explain the reasoning behind their answers to the class.
Closure:
 “Now that you have finished your task sheets, I want to review what we accomplished today. In
the lesson, we learned that there are a variety of ways to represent a whole and, in this case, it
was the number one. We looked at fractions that were equivalent to one and made addition
sentences. Who can tell me what a fraction is? What does equivalent mean? What way did we
know that our fraction strips were equivalent to one? It is important to recognize that each part
of our equation was a portion of the whole and that the different parts, whether it was one-eighth
or one-fourth, stayed the same size no matter what. Those sizes are always equal. It always will
take four of the one-fourths to make one. It will always take eight of the one-eighths to make
one. If I broke a candy bar into eight equal pieces, it would take all eight to make a whole candy
bar again. This is important in giving each person a fair share of it if we were sharing the candy.
Keep these ideas in mind, since we will continue to be working with fractions during this unit
while we explore the relationships of numbers in greater depth.”
 Have the students clean up and put their fraction strips in their envelopes for safe keeping.
 Tyler
Differentiation Strategy: There are several approaches that I could take with Tyler. I could have
Tyler attempt with his current strips to “make a two”. I could provide him with another strip and
Dostaler 37
1
have him create out of it. He could then list an entire new and much longer list of possible
32
addition sentences to “make a one.” I could provide him with some other paper strips and he
1 1 1 1 1 1
could try to make create , , , , , , and so forth with them and then write addition
3 5 6 7 9 12
sentences. I could also attempt to have him practice with mixed fractions.
 Michelle
seems to demonstrate the ability to meet grade level expectations with more focused instruction,
especially with fraction fluency and vocabulary. Differentiation should help improve her skills.
Michelle will have hearing support by the use of a microphone that I will wear, so that she can
hear me at a higher level in her hearing aids. She also sits near the front of the classroom. The
visual demonstration of the lesson on the board (equations, pictorial representations, etc.) will
assist Michelle in understanding the concept being taught. The presented fractions and
manipulatives will be written/drawn on the board or on an individualized task sheet for her to see,
in order to ensure that she knows what the class is working on. She will have written instruction
on how to make the fraction strips as well. She can also ask her math partner for support and
explanation during class instruction. She will be pulled into a small work group with other
students that need to improve fractional math concepts. For this lesson, she will place a sticker
on one of their “fourths” fraction strips as she says aloud “one-fourth”. Then, she will put a
sticker on the second “fourths” as she says “two-fourths”. She will continue to place stickers and
count aloud until the end of the strip. She will repeat with other strips as needed to build fluency
with fraction vocabulary and familiarity with fraction models.
References:
Dostaler 38
_Mar10.pdf>.
Make a One Observational Checklist Date: _______
Objective: The fourth grade students will be able add fractions and write corresponding number
1
sentences using fraction strips to the .
16
Student had a correct plan to solve the problem that utilized fraction and
Problem Solving
addition concepts, which could lead to an accurate answer.
Student shows insightful and/or creative use of fraction, whole number, and
Number Sense
addition understanding. There may be some minor flaws in application.
Student shows some accurate evidence of numerical computation and
Connections
integrates the connection in their symbolic representation.
Student utilizes fraction strips to assist in representation of the fraction and
Representation
addition concepts. Student may have had needed some assistance.
Problem
Name Solving
Number Sense Connections Representation
Assessment:
Name: _________________________________________ Date: _____________________________
“Make a One” Recording Sheet

Write an addition sentence using fractions that equals one (1). Write each sentence in
the boxes below. Use the fraction strips to help you.
1 1
Example: 2 + 2 =1 =1
=1 =1
=1 =1
=1 =1
=1 =1
=1 =1
Example of completed task sheet:
Name: ___Madison________________________________ Date:

___11/9/10______________________
“Make a One” Recording Sheet

Write an addition sentence using fractions that equals one (1). Write each sentence in
the boxes below. Use the fraction strips to help you.
1 1
Example: 2 + 2 =1 1/8 + 1/8 + 1/8 + 1/8 + 1/2 =1
1/16 + 1/16 + 1/16 + 1/16 + 1/16 + 1/16 + 1/16 +

1/4 + 1/4 + 1/2 = 1
1/16 + 1/2 =1
1/4 + 1/4 + 1/4 + 1/4 = 1 1/8 + 1/8 + 1/8 + 1/8 + 1/8 +1/8 + 1/8 + 1/8 =1
1/16 + 1/16 + 1/16 + 1/16 + 1/16 + 1/16 + 1/16 + 1/16 + 1/16 + 1/16 + 1/16 + 1/16 + 1/16 + 1/16 +
1/16 + 1/16 + 1/16 + 1/16 + 1/16 + 1/16 + 1/16 =1 1/16 + 1/16 + 1/16 + 1/4 + 1/4 =1
1/16 + 1/16 + 1/16 + 1/16 + 1/16 + 1/16 + 1/16

+ 1/16 + 1/8 + 1/8 + 1/8 + 1/8 = 1 1/2 + 1/4 + 1/8 + 1/8 = 1
1/4 + 1/4 + 1/8 + 1/8 + 1/8 +1/8 = 1 1/2 + 1/4 + 1/8 + 1/16 + 1/16 = 1
PATTERN BLOCK FRACTIONS

th
Content Standards:
o GLE7. Construct and use number lines, pictures and models to determine and identify
equivalent ratios and fractions.
o GLE8. Locate, label and estimate (round) fractions with like and unlike denominators of
two, three, four, five, six, eight and ten by constructing and using models, pictures and
number lines.
o GLE9. Construct and use models, pictures and number lines to compare fractional parts
of a whole with like and unlike denominators of two, three, four, five, six, eight and ten.
parts of a whole, including a part of a group or groups, as simple fractions.

Learner Background:
o Understand the vocabulary terms: “numerator”, “denominator”, “equivalent”,
“rhombus”, “trapezoid”, “hexagon”, and “triangle”.
o Have experience using mathematics manipulatives, such as pattern blocks, but largely
not for fraction concepts.
o Have experience working with various fraction models from previous unit lessons,
including linear and pie.
o Have experience working with symbolic forms of fractions, but several need more
practice with this concept and will receive it in the lesson.
o Have experience representing quantities that have the same value with an equal sign.
1
o Have previous experience working with fractions to the .
16
o Have previous experience tallying results and will receive practice during this lesson.
o Have limited previous experience relating one whole to various fraction models and will
receive practice during this lesson.
Student Learning Objectives(s): The fourth grade students will be recognize and generate
equivalent fractions using pattern blocks, while understanding different models can show one whole.
Assessment: The teacher will evaluate the students using a 3-point rubric once they hand in their “A
Different Whole” Recording Game Sheet. The teacher will score the students as a 3 – Meets or
Exceeds Expectations, a 2 – Partially Meets Expectations, or a 1 – Does Not Meet Expectations. To
receive a 3, the students on the recording sheet must have tally marks present that represent game play
of ten rounds, drawings are present and correctly represent the pattern blocks utilized in this task, the
1 2
shapes are circled within the “One Whole” shape and demonstrate an understanding of and with
6 12
both fractions circled correctly, and their explanation must demonstrate an understanding about the
idea that the amounts are the same or equivalent, but created with different shapes/fraction amounts
within the “One Whole”. To receive a 2, the students on the recording sheet must have tally marks
present that represent ten rounds of game play, their drawing is present and demonstrates some
misunderstandings or difficulties representing blocks utilized in this task, shapes are circled within the
1 2
“One Whole” shape, but may demonstrate difficulties understanding and , and their explanation
6 12
are general, unspecific, or demonstrate some misunderstandings about the idea that the amounts are
the same or equivalent, but created with different shapes/fraction amounts. To receive a 1, the
students on the recording sheet must have not have tally marks present that represent ten rounds of
game play, the drawing is not present or does not properly represent the blocks utilized in this task, no
shapes are circled within the “One Whole” shape or the wrong fractional amounts are circled, and
their explanation is unclear and/or does not include the idea that the amounts are the same or
equivalent, but created with different shapes/fraction amounts within the “One Whole”. In doing this
recording sheet, the students would be able to see the numerical and visual connection between
pattern blocks and that the shapes are equivalent because their sizes are the same/take up the same
amount of the whole. The teacher will score each student on the rubric from 1 to 3, with a score of 2
or higher as passing for this lesson. (See the assessment section at the end of the lesson plan.)
 Pattern Blocks (Do not include the tan rhombuses or orange squares.)
1 1 1 1 1 1
 Fraction Cube labeled , , , , , and (One per partnered group.)
2 3 6 6 12 12
 “A Different Whole” Recording Game Sheet (One for each student.)
 “Pattern Block Fractions” 3-Point Rubric
 Crayons
 If pattern blocks are not available or for extra support, students can visit
http://www.mathplayground.com/patternblocks.html for virtual pattern blocks.
o “Today, we’re going to start our lesson by taking a survey! I want you all to think about your
answer to the options that are written on the board. You will each come up and make a tally
under the column that fits your answer. Which one of these colors is your favorite?”
o Draw this chart on the board:
Red Yellow Blue Green
o Have the students come up and mark one tally in their preferred column. Review how to
correctly cross off the group of five tallies.
o Total the results. Discuss the results with the students. Write the numeral amounts under
each box. Have the students find the fraction for each color of student preference. “Which
has the most tallies/greatest fraction? Which has the least tallies/smallest fraction?”
o Have the students stand up to visually represent their portion of the whole they make up.
o “Today, we are going be working with fractions using pattern blocks that are these colors!
Everyone will get a group of pattern blocks to work with. We are going to be covering up
blocks with other shapes and looking at the relationships between the whole shapes and
fraction portions. We will also try to make the same fractions over again using different
types of shapes. At the end, we will play a fraction game that uses the pattern blocks with our
math partners! First, we’re going to have some fun exploring and learning how to work with
our pattern blocks.”
Lesson Development:
 Model Whole class instructional grouping

o Provide each student with a set of pattern blocks and allow them to free explore the blocks for
two minutes.
the pattern blocks for finding fractions. Like I said previously, today we are going to find
what fraction each shape is in relation to one whole. To do this, I am going to take my
yellow hexagon shape. This one shape represents one whole. We will place other shapes on
top of this shape to see what combinations we can use to fill it up and what fraction each
shape is.”
o Use the think aloud strategy to explain thoughts on how to find one way to fill the shape up
using the red trapezoid. Have the students lay one yellow hexagon on their desk and to take a
1
red trapezoid, while you model. Show them how this shape covers of hexagon.
2
o “If you lay another red trapezoid on it, the two shapes completely cover the whole hexagon.
1
If this is the case, the red trapezoid must be of the hexagon. The red trapezoid is one of
2
1 1
two equal parts of the hexagon. I know that and make one whole, because my yellow
2 2
hexagon is completely covered evenly. There are no parts of the trapezoids over hanging it.”
o Model using the manipulatives. Move them around and project them onto an overhead if
possible so that all the students can see.
o Draw a chart on the board that looks as follows:
The covers __________ of a

1
o Fill in the fractional amount of in the blank for the red trapezoid.
2
o Repeat this activity with the blue rhombus. Cover up the yellow hexagon with the blue
rhombus, modeling on an overhead so that all students can see. Have them do this as well.
o “How many rhombuses did it take to cover the hexagon? (“Three.”) The rhombus is what
fractional part of the hexagon? (“One-third.”) How do you know that a rhombus is one-
third?” (“Because the three rhombuses are identical, so each one is an equal part and together
they make a whole hexagon.”)
1
o Fill in the fractional amount of in the blank for the blue rhombus on the board.
3
o Repeat this activity with the green triangle and ask similar questions. Fill in the chart.
o “Can any of you think of other ways to cover the hexagon with these shapes? What about
combining more than one type of shape?” (“You can do one green triangle, one blue
rhombus, and one red trapezoid…. Two blue rhombus and two green triangles…etc.”) Ask
the students what fraction of each shape covers their whole yellow hexagon and write
amounts on the board in words and numbers. (“1 whole is the same as: 2 thirds and 2 sixths.”)
2 5
o “Which pattern blocks can you use to make of a hexagon ? of a hexagon ? Make each
3 6
fraction again using different shapes.” Write the student responses on the board again.
2
2 thirds ( )is the same as:
3
5 sixths ( 56 )is the same as:
4 1 1
4 sixths( ) 1 half ( )and 1 third ( )
6 2 3
1 1 1 2
1 half
2()and 1 sixth ( )
6
1 half ( )and 2 sixths ( )
2 6
2
2 thirds ( )and 1 sixth
3
1 third ( 13 )and 2 sixths ( 26 ) 1

( )
6
 Guided Practice
o Hold up a blue rhombus. “Any shape can be called one whole. We’ve been working with the
yellow hexagon as our one whole. Now I am holding up a blue rhombus. If this is now our
whole, which blocks can you cover it with to show equal parts? (“Green triangles.”) Which
block is one-half of the whole?” (“One green triangle.”)
o Have the students use their pattern blocks to figure out the answers to these questions.
o Hold up a red trapezoid. “Which block would be one-third if the trapezoid is the new
whole?” (“One green triangle.”) Allow them to use their pattern blocks again to solve.
1 1
o Ask the students to explain why a green triangle is of a red trapezoid, but of a blue
3 2
rhombus.
 Independent Practice Partnered Instructional Grouping
o Pass around an “A Different Whole” Recording Game Sheet to each student.
o Pair off the students and provide each pair with a labeled fraction cube.
o Discuss the fractional parts of the “new” whole on the recording sheet, which is made up of
two yellow hexagons.
o “How many red trapezoids does it take to cover the whole? (“Four.”) How many to cover half
1
of it? (“Two.”) So two trapezoids are of the whole.”
2
o Continue this same discussion for the green triangles and blue rhombuses.
1
o “What is another way to cover of this whole?” (“One trapezoid, rhombus and triangle… six
2
triangles…three rhombuses.”
o Explain to the students that they will be playing a game with their partners. Read the
directions to the students: “Take turns with a partner using pattern blocks to cover the ‘One
Whole’ shape on the page. Use only the red trapezoid, blue rhombus, and green triangles.
When player one begins, they roll the fraction cube to find out their fraction of the “One
Whole” they need to cover and puts that shape on it. The other player then takes their turn.
The first one to EXACTLY cover the ‘one whole’ wins that round. Mark a tally in your
section when you win. Play 10 rounds. After 10 rounds, draw in the shapes covering your
‘One Whole’.”
o Go step by step playing the first round as a whole class so that the students understand what
they are doing to play the game.
o Allow the students to then continue playing with their partners until they finish the ten
rounds.
o As students play, walk around and assist any students that have questions or difficulties.
o When the students are done with 10 rounds and have drawn in their shapes, explain that they
1
have to circle the shape(s) that makes up of their “One Whole” and the ones that make up
6
2
of their “One Whole.” They should write what they notice on the back of their paper.
12
o When students are finished, invite some students to share their responses to the final question,
including the shapes they circled, and explain the reasoning behind their answers to the class.
Closure:
 “Now that you all are finished with your task sheets, let’s review what we accomplished
today. In the lesson, we learned that there are a variety of ways to represent a whole. A
whole can be any shape of our pattern blocks that we consider to be ‘one whole’. We looked
at how different smaller pattern blocks can be different fractions depending on the size of our
‘one whole’. What fraction was the green triangle when the yellow hexagon was our one
1
whole? (“ What was fraction was the green triangle when the blue rhombus was our one
6
1
whole? (“ ”) How can the same shape be a different fraction? We also looked at shapes that
2
were equivalent to one another. What shape was one-half of the yellow hexagon? (“One red
trapezoid.”) What other shapes were one-half of the yellow hexagon? (“One blue rhombus
1 1
and a green triangle…Three green triangles.”) In this case, we learned that and are the
3 6
1 3 1
same as or equivalent to and that is the same as or equivalent to . It is important to
2 6 2
remember that we always need to look at the whole shape first. Then we can determine how
much each portion of the shape another object takes up. We also need to keep in mind that
there may be different ways of making fractions by finding other numbers that are equivalent.
Keep these ideas in mind, since we will continue to be working with fractions during this unit
while we explore the relationships of numbers in greater depth.”
 Have the students clean up, hand in their recording sheets, and put their pattern blocks away.
 Tyler
Differentiation Strategy: In this lesson, there are several options that I can take to accommodate
Tyler’s need for more advanced explorations.
o Tyler may utilize and incorporate the tan rhombuses and orange squares to find new
fraction amounts.
o Tyler could create a picture out of the fraction blocks, trace around their edges and then
find the fractional amount of each of those shapes in relation to the one whole. He
could then find an alternative way to create the same picture using different pattern
blocks.
o Tyler could play a similar game as “A Different Whole”, but instead use his fraction
strips from the previous lesson. On his turn, he can use a counter to cover a section of
the fraction strip that matches his toss. Alternatively, he could place counters on other
1 1
strips to make equivalent fractions. For example, if Tyler tossed a , he could cover
3 3
1
or two units. On each turn, Tyler would record the fraction he tossed and any
6
equivalent fractions he made. Once again, when covering all of his strips, he would be
the winner of that round.
 Michelle
sits near the front of the classroom. The visual demonstration of the lesson on the board and
overhead (moving the pattern blocks, tables with fraction amounts, etc.) will assist Michelle in
understanding the concept being taught. The presented fractions and manipulatives will be
written/drawn on the board or on an individualized task sheet for her to see, in order to ensure
that she knows what the class is working on. She can also ask her math partner for support and
explanation during class instruction. She will be pulled into a small work group with other
students that need to improve fractional math concepts. For this lesson, she may use flashcards
to match fractions with its picture and read the fraction out loud. She may then create those
fractions with the pattern blocks.
References:

_Mar10.pdf>.
McGraw-Hill Education, Co. (2004). Using Pattern Blocks as Fractions. Growing with Mathematics.
New York City, NY: Wright Group/McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
Pattern Block Fractions 3-Point Rubric Date: _______
Objective: The fourth grade students will be recognize and generate equivalent fractions
using pattern blocks, while understanding different models can show one whole.
Tally marks are present representing game play and 10 rounds.
Drawing is present and correctly represents blocks utilized in this
3 task.
There are shapes circled within the “One Whole” shape and
Meets or Exceeds the
1 2
objectives of the task. demonstrate and understanding of and . Both fractions are
6 12
Demonstrates a high level circled correctly.
of understanding.
Explanation may demonstrate an understanding about the idea that
the amounts are the same or equivalent, but created with different
shapes/fraction amounts within the “One Whole”.
Tally marks are present representing game play and 10 rounds.
Drawing is present, but may demonstrate some misunderstandings
or difficulties representing blocks utilized in this task.
2
There are shapes circled within the “One Whole” shape, but may
Partially meets the 1 2
objectives of the task. demonstrate difficulties understanding and . One fraction
6 12
Demonstrates some amount may be circled correctly.
understanding.
Explanation may be general, unspecific, or demonstrate some
misunderstandings about the idea that the amounts are the same or
equivalent, but created with different shapes/fraction amounts.
There are no tally marks representing game play and 10 rounds.
Drawing is not present or does not properly represent the blocks
1 utilized in this task.
Does not meet the
There are no shapes circled within the “One Whole” shape or the
objectives of the task.
wrong fractional amounts are circled.
Demonstrates poor or
Explanation is unclear and/or does not include the idea that the
incorrect understanding.
amounts are the same or equivalent, but created with different
shapes/fraction amounts within the “One Whole”.
Name Score Name Score

Assessment:
Name: _________________________________________ Date: _____________________________
A Different Whole
Recording Sheet
 Take turns with a partner using pattern locks to cover your “One Whole” below.
 Use only these pattern blocks.
 Roll a fraction cube to find out your fraction of the “One Whole” you need to cover.
 The first one to exactly cover “One Whole” wins this round.
 Use tally marks to record in the chart. Play 10 rounds.
 Draw in the shapes covering your “One Whole” in the last round.
Player 1: _________________________________
Player 2: _________________________________
Player Name Tally Marks

1
After drawing the shapes, circle the shape that makes up of the “One Whole.” Circle the shape(s)
6
2
that make up of the “One Whole.” Write about what you notice on the back of this paper.
12
Name: ___Madison_____________________________ Date: ____11/10/10__________________
A Different Whole
Recording Sheet
 Take turns with a partner using pattern locks to cover your “One Whole” below.
 Use only these pattern blocks.
 Roll a fraction cube to find out your fraction of the “One Whole” you need to cover.
 The first one to exactly cover “One Whole” wins this round.
 Use tally marks to record in the chart. Play 10 rounds.
 Draw and color in the shapes covering your “One Whole” in the last round.
Player 1: ____ Madison__________________
Player 2: _____ Jacob___________________
Player Name Tally Marks

Madison IIII I
Jacob IIII
1
After drawing the shapes, circle the shape that makes up of the “One Whole.” Circle the shape(s)
6
2
that make up of the “One Whole.” Write about what you notice on the back of this paper. Flip over
12
The parts I circled show the same amunt of the shape. Two
of the green squares are the same size as the blue rombus.
The green squares are each a twelfth and the rombus is a
sixth. So two of the green are the same as one of the blue.
They are the same amunt.

VISUALIZING HALVES AND FOURTHS

th
Content Standards:
relationships. (CT Department of Education, 2010, p. 33)
numbers.
Learner Background:
o Understand the vocabulary terms: “square”, “halves”, and “fourths”.
o Have experience using mathematics manipulatives, such as geoboards, but only for
geometry concepts in the past.

o Have experience working with symbolic forms of fractions.
1
o Have some previous experience working with fractions to the , but have difficulties
16
visualizing them in more abstract ways and will receive practice doing so for halves and
fourths in this lesson.
o Have some previous experience relating one whole to various fraction models, but
several need more practice with this concept and will receive it during this lesson.
Student Learning Objectives(s): The fourth grade students will construct different regions to
1 1 1 1
demonstrate or and construct the whole unit when given a region representing or with the
2 4 2 4
use of geoboards.
Assessment: The students will evaluate themselves with a self-assessment sheet after completing the
“Quilt Fractions” Recording Packet. This assessment task will be answered by the students at the end
of the lesson so that they can self-evaluate their class work, as well as their participation and
cooperation. This sheet allows the teacher to determine which student partnerships had difficulties by
what is reported, as well as compare the students’ views of their participation to those observed by the
teacher. The teacher will grade the students using the same sheet. The students will evaluate
themselves on 10-point scale on a variety of areas, including working with the manipulatives,
drawing, shading, and creating ½ and ¼ fraction quilt squares, discussing ideas and results with the
class, working well with classmates, and using time well. The students have space at the bottom of
the self-evaluation to state what they liked most or did well during the lesson, as well as what they
liked least or had difficulties with during the lesson. Teachers may not recognize what students
struggle with through observations and this explanation by the students can provide insight into any
difficulties they faced when working with the fractions or manipulatives. As students work on the
recording packet, they will experiment with finding different ways to show halves and fourths of
shapes, allowing them to think visually and explore the idea that different shapes can cover the same
area. (See the assessment section at the end of the lesson plan.)
 The Quilt Story by Tony Johnston and Tomie dePaola
 Geoboards (One for each pair of students.)
 Geobands (5-8 for each pair of students.)
 “Quilt Fractions” Recording Packet (One for each student.)
 Dot Grid Paper
 “Quilt Fractions” Self-Assessment (One for each student.)
 Scissors (One pair for each student.)
 Crayons
 Quilt and/or an image of a quilt
o Show the class a quilt, either by providing them with an actual quilt or by displaying an
image of one on the overhead for them to see.
o “Who can tell me what this is? (“A quilt!”) Does anyone know how they make quilts?
(“They take pieces of fabric to make squares and then sew all of the squares together.”) What
shapes do you see inside of one of the quilt squares?” (Answers will vary.)
o “I’m going to read you a story today about a special quilt, like those we’ve seen here, that
was loved by a family for many years. The book is called The Quilt Story by Tony Johnston
and Tomie dePaola.” Read the story to the students.
o “Today, we are going to look at fractions as we make a class quilt! Everyone will get one
geoboard, several geobands, and dot grid paper to work with. I will show you how to
properly use these materials. We are going to be creating halves, fourths and whole shapes
on the geoboards. What does half mean? (“It means we cut something down the middle
equally…etc.”) How many pieces do we have then and what does the fraction look like?
1
(“We will have two pieces and the fraction looks like .”) What does fourths mean? (“We cut
2
something in half and then in half again….etc.”) How many pieces do we have of an item in
this case and what does the fraction look like? (“We will have four pieces and the fraction
1
looks like .”) What is one whole? (“A whole is when we have the entire thing with no pieces
4
missing.”) As we explore these portions, we will be working towards making our own class
quilt that will have each of us contributing quilt squares to be displayed in our room.”
Lesson Development:
 Model Whole class instructional grouping
o Provide each student with a geoboard and 5-8 geobands. Allow them to free explore the
geoboards for two minutes and to create their own images on it, such as a house. Remind
students that if the boards are used inappropriately that they will lose the privilege to utilize
them and can instead work with dot grid paper for the lesson instead.
the geoboard for finding fractions. Like I said previously, today we are going to make a shape
and then break it up into halves and fourths. To do this, I am going to make a big square on
my board. This one shape represents one whole. I am going to stretch my band across four of
the pegs and down four of them. I know it is big enough when I count nine pegs inside the
square. We will place geobands on top of this shape to see what fractions it can be divided
into. I would like you all to take one geoband and make this square like mine.”
o Use an overhead projector to demonstrate what you are doing on the geoboard to the students
or use grid dot paper to demonstrate what it should look like by drawing the square on it.
o “I am now going to use another geoband to divide the square into two equal parts.” Use the
think aloud strategy to explain thoughts on how to you would do so. Have the students find
their solution for this by using their own geobands, while you model. Show them how this
1
divides the shape into . “How do I know that this square is divided in half?” (“There are
2
two equal pieces of it…The line goes right down the middle of it.”)
o “I am now going to use another geoband to divide the square into fourths.” Use the think
aloud strategy to explain thoughts on how to you would do so. Have the students find their
solution for this by using their own geobands, while you model. Show them how this shape
1
divides the square into . “How do I know that this square is divided into fourths?” (“There
4
are four equal pieces of it.”)
o Pass out the “Quilt Fractions” Recording Packet to each student. Have them record what they
did on their geoboard into question #1 on the sheet. They should draw one line down to
represent how they divided it in half. The students should then divide the same square the
other way to divide it into fourths.
o “I’m now going to divide the square on my geoboard into as many squares as I can so that
there are no more empty pegs in it.” Use the think aloud strategy to explain thoughts on how
to you would do so. Have the students find their solution for this by using their own
geobands, while you model. “How many smaller squares can be seen in this big square?
(“There are sixteen little squares inside the bigger square.”) So if there are 16 squares inside
this one, how many squares would make up half of the large one? (“Eight!”) How many
make up one-fourth? (“Four!”) I would like you to draw in the lines on question #2 so that
you have all sixteen small squares drawn.” Model this on the overhead for students to see
and copy on their paper.
 Guided Practice Partnered Instructional Grouping

o “Let’s take a look at question #3 together. It says, ‘Jon, Shana, Alex and Jolene tried to find
1 1
ways of designing of a quilt square. Is each piece shaded of the whole? How can you
2 2
tell?’ We can see their quilt square designs below. How can we show and know their quilt
squares are divided into equal shares? How many small squares are needed to be shaded in to
show one-half?” (“You need to have eight shaded in to show that half is colored.”)
o “We can start by looking at Jon’s quilt square. I notice that some of the small squares are not
all the way shaded in. How can we count the small squares on his if a full one isn’t shaded?
(“Well I can see that some of the squares are half-shaded, so we can count two of those as one
whole square.”) Alright, so let’s count the number of squares in Jon’s quilt square that are
shaded in to see if he has enough to make two equal shares. Remember, we need to count
two half-squares as one whole.” Count along with the students to find the number of squares
in Jon’s quilt square. “How many did we find? (“Eight! He does have half shaded in!”)
o Continue with the same line of questioning with the students to determine whether or not
Shana, Alex, and Jolene in the packet have shaded in half of their whole quilt square, as well.
o Have the students recreate the quilt square designs of Jon, Shana, Alex, and Jolene on their
geoboards for support.
1
o “Is each piece shaded of the whole? How can you tell? (“Yes!! They all have eight squares
2
shaded in, which means half!”) Write your responses on the lines for question #3.”
o “I would like you all to read question #4: ‘Use your geoboards to find 4 more ways to shade
1
in of the quilt square. Draw and shade it below.’ You can work with your math partner to
2
answer this question. Each design for the four quilt squares should be different.” Allow the
students some time to work on this using their geoboards. Have several share their designs at
the board or on the overhead and discuss the results when they are finished.
1
o “I’d like you to look at questions #5. For this question, it asks: ‘Only of the whole quilt
2
shape is drawn. Use the geoboard to create the whole and draw it below.’ Below this
question, we can see a triangle. This shape is only half of the shape that is going to be put on
a quilt square. We need to make this shape a whole. Let’s make this shape on our geoboard.
What do we need to do to make this shape one whole, if this triangle is only half of it? This
reminds me of when we worked with the pattern blocks.” (“We need to make another
triangle because two equal shapes/shares make one whole.”) Model this for the students by
creating the other triangle on your geoboard to be seen on the overhead and draw it in on the
grid dot paper.
o Have the students try the next two shapes on their own or with a partner. They must first
create it on their geoboard and then recreate it by drawing it in on their dot grid paper.
Remind students two equal pieces create one whole when they are only one-half.
1
o “I’d like you to look at questions #6. For this question, it asks: ‘Only of the whole quilt
4
shape is drawn. Use the geoboard to create the whole and draw it below.’ Below this
question, we can see a rectangular-like shape. This shape is only one-fourth of the shape that
is going to be put on a quilt square. We need to make this shape a whole. Let’s make this
shape on our geoboard. What do we need to do to make this shape one whole, if what we see
is only one-fourth of it? This reminds me of when we worked with the pattern blocks.” (“We
need to make another three shapes like it because four equal shapes/shares make one whole
when we are using fourths.”) Model this for the students by creating the other three similar
shapes on your geoboard to be seen on the overhead and draw it in on the grid dot paper.
o Have the students try the next square shapes on their own or with a partner. They must first
create it on their geoboard and then recreate it by drawing it in on their dot grid paper.
Remind students four equal pieces create one whole when they are using fourths.
 Independent Practice Individual Instructional Grouping
o “I would not like you all to take a look at question #7. Here you will be creating your own
two quilt squares that will be displayed for everyone who visits our classroom! There are
some directions for creating these squares, however. I want you to be creative!”
o “In the directions it says: ‘Design two quilt squares to be placed on the class quilt. Color and
1 1
cut out the squares. One quilt square must be yellow and purple. One quilt square must
2 2
1
be divided into of pink, yellow, purple, and blue. What fraction does the quilt square
4
represent? How do you know? Write your answer on the back.’”
o “You will be creating two squares: one is dealing with halves and the other with fourths.
Once you design your quilt squares and color them in the appropriate colors, you will cut
them out. On the back of the quilt squares, you will write your name and answer the
questions.”
o Pass around scissors for students to use.
o “Once you have finished your two quilt squares, I will come around and pass out a Quilt
Squares Self-Evaluation Sheet for each of you to fill out. Follow the directions on the
assessment sheet and use your Quilt Fractions Recording Packet to fill in the blanks.”
o As students work on their quilt squares in question #7, walk around and assist any students
that have questions or difficulties. Remind students that when they are done designing,
coloring, and cutting out their quilt squares should write the answers to the questions on the
back of their paper.
o When students are finished, invite some students to share their responses to the final
questions and explain the reasoning behind their answers to the class.
o Have the students complete the Quilt Fractions Self-Evaluation in order for them to evaluate
their progress, understanding, and participation during the lesson. Collect them when they
are finished filling them out.
o Collect the two quilt squares and materials (geoboards, etc.) from the students.
Closure:
 “Now that you all have finished your recording packet and quilt squares, I want to review what
we accomplished today. In the lesson, we explored constructing wholes and dividing them by ½
or ¼. A whole can be any shape that we make on the geoboard consider to be ‘one whole’ and in
our case, it was mainly the quilt square shapes. We looked at how we could divide the quilt
squares into halves or fourths in a variety of ways, yet they were all equal shares.”
 “In our quilt square made on the geoboards during the investigation, how many smaller squares
made one-half of our square? (“Eight!”) How many smaller squares were there in total of our
square? (“Sixteen.”) I have a challenge question: If I were writing a fraction using these
numbers, what number is the numerator and what is the denominator? Let’s write the fraction on
8 1
the board. (“ ”) What fraction is this equal to? (“ ”) How do you know?” (“Eight is half of
16 2
sixteen. If you take sixteen things and get rid of half, you’d have eight left over.”)
 “How many smaller squares made one-fourth of our square? (“Four!”) If I were writing a
4
fraction using four and sixteen, what would our fraction look like? (“ ”) What fraction is this
16
1
equal to? (“ ”) How do you know? (“If you have sixteen things and put them into four groups,
4
there would be four in each group.”) As you can see, there are ways to write the same fraction
and these numbers are equivalent.”
 “We also said that certain shapes were halves or fourths and constructed whole units out of them.
This can be done with any shape, as long as we know what fraction it represents. We need to
know the denominator, so we know how many shapes we need to create our whole. If one square
1
represents , how many squares create one whole? (“Four!”) We will need to keep these ideas in
4
mind so that we can use them during our final investigation of fractions and wholes tomorrow.”
 Tyler
Differentiation Strategy: In this lesson, there are several options that I can take to accommodate
Tyler’s need for more advanced explorations.
o I may challenge Tyler to see how many different ways he can divide a geoboard into
fourths by recording his designs on dot grid paper. He must not repeat designs and
should be reminded that equal parts may not always look the same.
o Tyler may create his own quilt square image on the geoboard with the geobands, record
this image on dot grid paper, and then find the fractional portion of each section of his
image in relationship to the whole (including equivalent fractions).
 Michelle
sits near the front of the classroom. The visual demonstration of the lesson on the board and
overhead (creating the shapes on the geoboards, drawing representations, etc.) will assist
Michelle in understanding the concept being taught. The presented fractions and manipulatives
will be written/drawn on the board or on an individualized task sheet for her to see, in order to
ensure that she knows what the class is working on. She can also ask her math partner for
support and explanation during class instruction. She will be pulled into a small work group with
other students that need to improve fractional math concepts. For this lesson, she may practice
creating halves and wholes with other students who need similar support. She will be provided
with a blank sheet of dot paper where she will take turns with a partner to make “half-shapes” on
the dot grid paper. The pair will exchange papers and make each shape into a whole. I may also
allow them to cut out the shapes so they can maneuver and manipulate them.
References:

_Mar10.pdf>.
McGraw-Hill Education, Co. (2004). Visualizing Halves and Fourths. Growing with Mathematics.
New York City, NY: Wright Group/McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
Assessment:
Name: ____________________________________________ Date: _________________________
Quilt Fractions Self-Evaluation

1 1
Objective: The fourth grade students will construct different regions to demonstrate or and construct the whole unit when given a
2 4
1 1
region representing or with the use of geoboards and dot grid paper.
2 4
Circle your response from 1 (Lowest) to 10 (Highest) on how you believe you accomplished the task.
Worked with the manipulatives
Inappropriately Always careful
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
1 1
Drew and shaded and of the quilt squares (Questions #1-4)
2 4
Drew a little Drew it all
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Drew the whole shapes on the dot grid paper (Questions #5-6)
Drew a little Drew it all
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Recorded responses to all questions
Wrote a little Wrote a lot
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Created my two quilt squares for the class quilt (Question #7)
Completed no portions of the squares Completed all portions of the squares
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Discussed ideas and results with the class
Some of the time All of the time
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Worked well with my partner
Some of the time All of the time
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Used time well
Wasted time Worked hard
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Learned from this lesson
Learned a little Learned a lot
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
Things I liked or did well: ____________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
70
Things I did not like or had difficulties with: ______________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________________
71
Name: ________________________________________ Date: _____________________________
Quilt Fractions
Recording Sheet
1. . . . . . . 2. . . . . . .
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1
3. Jon, Shana, Alex and Jolene tried to find ways of designing of a quilt square. Is each piece shaded
2
1
of the whole? How can you tell? ________________________________________________________________________
2
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________
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1
4. Use your geoboards to find 4 more ways to shade in of the quilt square. Draw and shade it below.
2
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5. Only of the whole quilt shape is drawn. Use the geoboard to create the whole and draw it below.
2
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1
4
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7. Design two quilt squares to be placed on the class quilt. Color and cut out the squares
1 1
 One quilt square must be yellow and purple.
2 2
1
 One quilt square must be divided into of pink, yellow, purple, and blue.
4
 What fraction does the quilt square represent? How do you know? Write your answer on the back.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
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Name: ___Madison____________________________ Date: ____11/11/10____________________
Quilt Fractions
Recording Sheet
1. . . . . . . 2. . . . . . .
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1
3. Jon, Shana, Alex and Jolene tried to find ways of designing of a quilt square. Is each piece shaded
2
1
of the whole? How can you tell? Yes, each piece is one-half because each whole square has 16 and
2
half of that is 8. They each have 8 colored in.__________________________
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1
4. Use your geoboards to find 4 more ways to design of the quilt square. Draw and shade it below.
2
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1
4
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
7. Design two quilt squares to be placed on the class quilt. Color and cut out the squares
1 1
 One quilt square must be yellow and purple.
2 2
1
 One quilt square must be divided into of pink, yellow, purple, and blue.
4
 What fraction does the quilt square represent? How do you know? Write your answer on the back.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
The fraction in this

quilt square is ½
because each color
covers 32 squares and
there are 64 total, so
half of that is 32.
The fraction in this

quilt square is ¼
because each color
covers 16 squares and
there are 64 total. 64
broken into 4 groups
has 16 in each group.
SUMMING UP FRACTIONS

th
Content Standards:
o GLE7. Construct and use pictures and models to determine and identify equivalent
ratios and fractions.
o GLE8. Locate, label and estimate (round) fractions with like and unlike denominators of
two, three, four, five, six, eight and ten by constructing and using models, pictures and
number lines.
o GLE9. Construct and use models, pictures and number lines to compare and order
fractional parts of a whole and mixed numbers with like and unlike denominators of
two, three, four, five, six, eight and ten.

numbers.
o GLE23. Estimate a reasonable answer to simple problems involving fractions, mixed
numbers and/or decimals (tenths).
Learner Background:
o Understand the vocabulary terms: “numerator”, “denominator”, “whole”, “equivalent”,
“halves”, and “fourths”.
o Have experience using a variety of mathematics manipulatives, such as geoboards,
pattern blocks, fraction strips, etc.
o Have experience working with symbolic forms of fractions.
1
o Have experience working with fractions to the , but need some minor experience
16
visualizing these fractions abstractly and will receive practice during this lesson.
o Have experience relating one whole to various fraction models and will demonstrate
their understanding of this concept and will receive it during this lesson.
Student Learning Objectives(s): The fourth grade students will—
 recognize fractions and construct unit wholes using various manipulatives, including
geoboards, pattern blocks and fraction strips.

1
 identify and construct equivalent fractions to one-sixteenth ( ) using various
16
manipulatives, including geoboards, pattern blocks and fraction strips.
Assessment: The teacher will evaluate the students using informal observations as they are working
on the centers. This Student Participation Observation Rubric allows the teacher to evaluate the
students’ participation throughout all aspects of the learning process using mainly observations.
Rating on a scale from 1-5 for categories including Communication, Openness to learn, Respect,
Accepts and provides Constructive Criticism, Material Preparedness, Academic Preparedness and
Class Presence, the teacher can evaluate the students’ involvement (on a 35-point scale) in whole
class, group, and individual exploration of learning activities. During the performance task, the
students will work in a variety of centers that utilize geoboard, fraction strip, and pattern block
manipulatives as they complete a “Summing Up Fractions” Recording Packet. Students will explore
and apply their knowledge of the units’ concepts by constructing them out of the manipulatives and
recording their findings and explanations in the packet. Their packets will be graded using a scoring
tool of a corrected “Summing Up Fractions” Recording Packet. This scoring tool is a copy of the
original packet, but provides the correct potential answers for the teacher to use as a reference to
evaluate the students’ responses. They will receive a score out of 45 points. They should receive a
score above 34 to be considered as meeting the goals for the unit, which is approximately 75% of the
packet correct. Students can receive 11 points in Center A with pattern blocks, 6 points in Center B
utilizing geoboards, 10 points in Center C as they explore fractional notation, and 18 points in Center
D using fraction strips. (See the assessment section at the end of the lesson plan.)
 Post-it notes
 Pattern Blocks (For Centers A and C)
 Geoboards (For Center B)

 Geobands (For Center B)
 Dot Grid Paper (For Center B)
 Fraction Strips (For Center D)
 “Summing Up Fractions” Recording Packet (One for each student.)
 “Summing Up Fractions” Corrected Recording Packet
 Student Participation Observation Rubric
 Scrap Paper
 Crayons
o “Today, we are going to be wrapping up our current unit on fractions. We have been
exploring different ways to create whole units, portion these wholes into regions, write
fraction amounts, and compare fraction amounts to their equivalents. Right now, we’re going
to do an activity to review what we have been learning the past week. I’m going to separate
you all into groups and you will go around the room with a pad of Post-it notes and you will
write down any words or phrases that you remember about the topic. Our topics are
“Whole”, “Fraction”, and “Equivalent”. You can post the note on the wall. When I let you
know, you will move around to your left to the next topic. Once every group has visited
them, we will go over your responses as a class.”
o Group the students into groups of three or four and send them to their designated work areas
in the classroom to perform the experiment. Allow the students to have time to go off into
their sections around the room and begin to brainstorm ideas about each topic. Walk around
and observe the students with the Student Participation Observation Rubric for cooperation
and collaboration of ideas. After 3-5 minutes at each station, allow the students to rotate to
the next topic. This continues until students have visited every topic.
o “Now that you all have each had a chance to visit all of the topics. I would like one volunteer
from each area to read me what all of us have written on the wall for that word. Let’s start
with ‘Whole’.” (“Whole… objects can be any shape… can be divided up… is equal to 1… is
1
equal to … can be made up of smaller fractions… can be made up of a number of shapes,
1
but still considered a whole… all of the fractions inside add up to 1…“)
o “Those responses provide a great summary of what a whole is. Can I have a member from
‘Fractions’ to read the responses?” (“Fractions… are objects divided up… is when
something is shared evenly… is part of a whole item… has a numerator and denominator…
has a numerator that shows what portion of the whole… has a denominator that shows how
many parts the whole is divided into...”)
o “A member from the “Equivalent” group can now share those Post-its…” (“Equivalent…
1 2
means that the parts are equal… shows that the parts are the same… is = … means that
2 4
the fractions cover the same amount…”)
o Have the students collect the Post-it notes and the paper topics off the wall and return to their
seats in the classroom.
o “You all did a wonderful job participating in that review. Today to finish our unit, we are
going to be participating in a series of Fraction Centers to explore our understanding of these
concepts. You all will be in groups to investigate, but you will have recording sheets that you
will be working on individually as you complete the exploration. You must follow my
directions carefully today as we are going through the centers because the sheet needs to be
completed in a certain way.”
Lesson Development: Small Group/Individual Instructional Grouping

o Provide each student with their own copy of the “Summing Up Fractions” Recording Sheet.
Divide the students into four groups, which will be working at each center and then rotating
throughout the room.
o “First, I’d like you all to take a look at your packets that you each have in front of you. I am
going to take you on a walk throughout the room, so that you can see what you need to do
when working in each center and how to answer the questions.”
o Have the students get up and walk to Center A, so that they can see the demonstration. They
can bring over their packets, but must leave any pencils or writing utensils at their desks.
o “In Center A, you will be working with pattern blocks to answer questions #1-3. Question #1
states: ‘If the value of the yellow hexagon is one whole, what fraction is each of the
following? Write the fraction on the line.’ You need to take the yellow hexagon and figure out
the fraction that a red trapezoid, blue rhombus, and green triangle would be of that hexagon.
You will write the fraction on the line. Underneath that, you will draw a picture to show each
of those shapes made into one whole hexagon. Question #2 states: ‘Which two pattern blocks
show the same amount shaded? What is the fraction shaded?’ You need to look at all the
shapes in the multiple choice question and circle your answer. Question #3 states: ‘What
fraction of the pattern block is shaded? What fraction is not shaded?’ You need to write the
answers on the lines provided. You can use the pattern blocks to answer any of these
questions and construct the shapes.”
o Have the students get up and walk to Center B, so that they can see the demonstration. They
can take a look at that portion on the packet sheet.
o “In Center B, you will be working with geoboards to answer questions #4-6. Question #4
1 1
states: ‘Use your geoboards to create and find a way to shade in of shape A and of shape
4 2
B.’ You need to make the shapes one at a time using your geoboard and geobands. Then you
need to divide up the shape accordingly. The first shape you will break it into fourths and the
second shape you will break into half. You will shade in the correct fraction on your paper.
1
Question #5 states: ‘Only of the whole shape is drawn. Use the geoboard to create the
4
whole and draw it below.’ There is a portion of the whole shape drawn. You will create the
1
whole shape on your geoboard and draw it on the dot grid paper. Question #6 states: ‘Only
2
of the whole shape is drawn. Use the geoboard to create the whole and draw it below.’ You
will do the same thing for this question as you did the last question, but this one uses a
different fraction.”
o Have the students get up and walk to Center C, so that they can see the demonstration. They
o “In Center C, you will be working with pattern blocks again to answer questions #7-12. For
Questions #7-10, there are directions that state: ‘Draw in the shape that represents the fraction.
Use pattern blocks to help you.’ There is an example on this section to demonstrate what you
1
need to do. As you can see, the orange shape represents of a whole shape. If I want to
4
3
make of the whole shape, it would look like this. (Build this for the students with the
4
pattern blocks.) I would need three orange blocks because the numerator tells me that there
are three-fourths and only one orange block represents one-fourth. I would then draw this
shape of three orange blocks on the paper. You will do the same thing for the rest of the
questions and draw the shapes that you built on the paper. Question #11 states: ‘What is the
numerator for the fraction you built in question #7? What does this number represent?’ You
need to look back to the fraction that you built in question #7, find the numerator and write it
down. Then, you will write about what that number represents in a fraction. Question #12
states: ‘What is the denominator in the fraction you built in question #8? What does this
number represent?’ You need to look back to the fraction that you built in question #8, find
the denominator and write it down. Then, you will write about what that number represents in
a fraction.”
o Have the students get up and walk to Center D, so that they can see the demonstration. They
o “In Center D, you will be working with fraction strips to answer questions #13-16. Question
#13 states: ‘Shade four equal parts in each container. Write the fraction you shaded.’ There
are three water containers on your paper divided into sections. You need to shade four equal
parts for each container, take a look at what you shaded and write the fraction for what you
shaded on the line. You will then look at these sections, create them with the fraction strips,
and answer question #14 that states, ‘Order the fractions you found above from greatest to
least.’ You need to write these fractions on the line in that correct order according to their
size. Question #15 states: ‘There are 8 candy bars and 6 people. Which picture shows how
each person can get an equal share?’ You can use the appropriate fraction strips to solve this
problem. Take a look at the three multiple choice answers and circle the one that
demonstrates what one person’s share of the candy bar would look like. Question #16 states:
‘Using the fraction strips, draw the lines and shade an equivalent fraction to what is provided.
Write the fraction in the boxes provided.’ There are three questions that you need to answer.
There is an example to demonstrate what you need to do for this one. We can see that in the
example there is one-third shaded the first picture. There are three blocks and one is shaded
in. To answer that, we drew in six blocks in the fraction strip and colored in two of them
because two-sixths is equivalent or the same as one-third. We then wrote the number fraction
next to it. You will do the same for the rest of the exploration using the fraction strips.”
o “Now that you all know what to do at each station, I would like your group to go to the
assigned station you will begin at with a pencil. You will get approximately ten minutes to
work at each station and then I will signal when you can rotate to the next station to the right.
You will need to work quietly and independently on your packet. Do your best work. I will
be walking around to observe you all fairly working on your fraction explorations.”
o Hold a discussion to clarify any misunderstandings or difficulties some students may have
before they begin the explorations.
o As students work in their centers, walk around and assist any students that have questions or
difficulties. Record observations on the students’ participation on the Student Participation
Observation Rubric. Remind students that they are to work their hardest and try their best on
their packets individually.
o Collect the packets when the students are finished completing them, which will be evaluated
after the end of the lesson according to the Completed “Summing Up Fractions” Recording
Packet.
o Have the students clean up the final center they are working at before returning to their seats
for closing discussion.
Closure:
 “Now that you all are finished with your center explorations and your recording packet, I want to
review what we have been learning during this unit. We have been looking at “wholes” and the
fractions that make up these wholes. A whole can be any shape that we state. (Hold up a
hexagon pattern block.) I can say that this is our whole shape. If this is our whole, what fraction
would a red trapezoid block be out of this hexagon? (“½!”) How do you know that it makes up
one-half? (“Because two of them fit inside and make two equal shares of the hexagon!”) If this
red trapezoid block was now our whole, what fraction would a green triangle block be out of this
1
new whole? (“ !”) How do you know that it makes up one-third?” (“Because three of them fit
3
inside and make three equal shares of the trapezoid!”)
 “Now that we have said that three triangles fit inside of the trapezoid, I’m going to call up two
students. (Have the students come up to the front of the class.) I’m going to give you two of the
triangles and the other the last triangle. What fraction of the trapezoid does ___ have? (The
student with two triangles.) (“They have two-thirds!”) What fraction of the trapezoid does ___
have? (The student with one triangle.) (“They have one-third!”) How would I write two-thirds
on the board? (“You put a two on the top, draw a line, and then write a three on the bottom.”)
2
(Write on the board.) What does the two on top represent and what is that called? (“It’s called
3
the numerator! It tells us what part of the whole they have.”) What does the three on the bottom
represent and what is its name?” (“It’s called the denominator and lets us know how many parts
1 2 1
are total in the whole.”) (Do the same line of questioning for .) We can see that and
3 3 3
makes one whole. So we can write a number sentence to represent this. What would this look
2 1 3
like?” (“ + = or 1”) Have the students sit back in their place that were holding the triangles.
3 3 3
 “Let’s go back to our hexagon as the whole. How could I MAKE one whole using the triangles?
How many would I need? (“You need six triangles to build a hexagon!”) (Draw a hexagon on
the board and draw in the triangles. Demonstrate with pattern blocks on the overhead.) Great,
we have made our own whole shape now. If I wanted to make one whole hexagon using the blue
rhombus, how many would I need? Would it be the same number as the triangles? (“No, you
need only three because they’re bigger and a different shape than the triangles.”) (Draw a
hexagon on the board and draw in the rhombuses. Demonstrate with pattern blocks on the
overhead.) So here we have two hexagons. One is divided into three equal shares or thirds and
another is divided into six equal shares or sixths. I’m going to remove one trapezoid from our
triangle. If I remove one-third or one rhombus, how many triangles do I need to remove from the
other hexagon to make the same portion empty? (“You need to take out two!”) If I take away
two-sixths of the hexagon by removing two triangles, that means that two-sixths is the same size
or portion as one-third of the hexagon. What is the word when two portions are equal amounts?
2 1
(“Equivalent!”) We know now that is equivalent to ! I can see that by taking two triangles
6 3
and putting them on top of one of the rhombuses. Two triangles equal one rhombus.”
 “Over the course of this week, we have been doing a lot of hands-on work with our fractions.
We solved story problems, we have created and broken apart wholes, we have found equivalent
fractions, and much more we have just discussed together. You all have been very successful
using the wide range of manipulatives to help you explore and understand fractions also,
including using the fraction strips, geoboards, and pattern blocks. We will revisit fractions again
in the future in other ways, but for now I am very proud that you all have worked your hardest to
grasp the concept of wholes and fractions. The observation and exploration skills that you all
have practiced will be very helpful in many ways throughout our math units.”
 Tyler
Differentiation Strategy: In this lesson, I would like Tyler to complete the included “Summing
Up Fractions” Recording Packet, in order for his understanding of the concepts to be fairly
weighed against the other students in the class. I would like to differentiate with an additional
activity for him to create story problems at each center to accommodate Tyler’s need for more
advanced explorations. The focus of the story problem in each center is as follows:
o Center A: Identifying the fraction within a given whole
o Center B: Creating a whole from a given part/fraction
o Center C: Finding an equivalent fraction
o Center D: Sharing an object or objects equally
o The students in the class could then solve the problems that he creates as a review of
these concepts during Morning Work or other class time throughout the year.
 Michelle
She has shown progress over the course of this unit with the small teacher-directed group support
she has received to improve her skills with fractional concepts. Michelle will have hearing
support by the use of a microphone that I will wear, so that she can hear me at a higher level in
her hearing aids. She also sits near the front of the classroom and will be in the front of the
groups as students observe the modeling of the centers. The visual demonstration of how to
answer the “Summing Up Fractions” Recording Packet questions for each individual center
should help assist Michelle in understanding what is required of her to complete the assessment
lesson. She will be using a variety of manipulatives that she has previous experience with to
assist and provide her with concrete hands-on opportunities. Each center will have directions
written on an individualized task sheet for her to see, in order to ensure that she knows how the
class is to perform in each center in accordance with the packet. She will be allowed to ask for
my specific support during the center exploration time, since she has to complete the
assignment/assessment alone and cannot reference her usual math partner.
References:

_Mar10.pdf>.
Dostaler 92
Assessment:
Student Participation Observation Rubric
Name: ___________________________ Participation Observation Rubric (____/35 pts) Date: _____________

Objective: The fourth grade students will—
 recognize fractions and construct unit wholes using various manipulatives, including geoboards, pattern blocks and fraction strips.
1
 identify and construct equivalent fractions to one-sixteenth ( ) using various manipulatives, including geoboards, pattern blocks and fraction strips.
16
Fails to meet expectations (1 pt) Meets Expectations (3 pts) Exceeds Expectations (5 pts)
 Provides no oral or written evidence of understanding  Occasionally participates in group discussion, but  Raises relevant questions and shares ideas with peers
the centers activity or group discussion rarely initiates or accepts leadership role in group  Offers clear and concise oral and written presentation
Communication  Never or rarely raises relevant questions  Does not elaborate on his or her understanding of personal ideas and understanding, indicating that
 Never or rarely provides oral or written  Often does not complete expression of his or her time has been devoted to thinking about the math
communication thoughts and ideas topics/concepts
 Accepts centers participation with a positive attitude
 Rejects or dismisses centers as meaningless or boring
 Actively seeks (by asking questions or speculating)
Openness to learn  Cannot make connections between lesson  Reluctantly accepts participation in centers
connections between lesson assignment and lesson
assignments and lesson objective
objective
 Dismisses the thoughts and ideas of others; possibly  Is tolerant of others but often dominates group  Listens to others; encourages others to contribute
uses rude or abusive language to ridicule activity or discussion ideas; accepts alternative perspectives; is tolerant of
Respect
 Offers ideas that are limited to his or her personal  Listens to the ideas of others but generally maintains the shortcomings of others; and helps others to
opinions personal views and ideas succeed in the class
 Positively accepts constructive criticism and
Accepts & provides  Often or always rejects constructive criticism  Accepts constructive criticism but does not incorporates it into his or her approach to learning
constructive criticism  Offers no viable alternatives to others’ suggestions incorporate it for improving targeted behaviors  Offers constructive criticism and critiques, including
viable suggestions for improvement to peers
 Is unable to respond correctly to questions regarding  Refers to concepts or topics related to the centers
centers participation and packet completion activity or discussion topic but provides incomplete  Refers to their centers experiences to present their
Academic  Offers responses that are consistently wrong or written or oral responses ideas during discussions
preparedness meaningless  Expresses opinions that may have merit but is unable  Demonstrates awareness of the lesson objectives and
 Expresses surprise or confusion when probed for his to support them with evidence from their recording teacher expectations
or her understanding packet
 Regularly forgets some materials or does not prepare
 Makes class materials readily available and accessible
fully; or prepares for class but is unable to retrieve his
Material  Consistently is unprepared for class without causing interruption of activities or
or her materials without disruption
preparedness  Does not properly utilize materials and manipulatives discussions
 Has some difficulties properly utilizing materials and
 Properly utilizes materials and manipulatives
manipulatives
Derived from: Craven, J. A. III, and Hogan, T. (2001). Assessing student participation in the classroom. Science Scope, 25(1), 36-40.
Dostaler 93
 Sits passively in class  Occasionally participates in group discussions  Frequently volunteers to participate in classroom
 Does not participate in group discussions  Provides ideas or comments that are largely activities
Class Presence
 Does not pay attention to classroom centers activities restricted to reiterations of others’ ideas or  Demonstrates his or her focus on classroom activities
comments by appropriate eye contact and alert posture
Derived from: Craven, J. A. III, and Hogan, T. (2001). Assessing student participation in the classroom. Science Scope, 25(1), 36-40.
Dostaler 94
Name: ________________________________________ Date: _____________________________

Summing Up Fractions
Summative Assessment - Recording Sheet
Center A
1. If the value of is one whole, what fraction is each of the following? Write the fraction
on the line.
_______________ _______________ _______________
Build one whole using Build one whole using
2. Which two pattern blocks show the same amount shaded? What is the fraction shaded? _______
A. B. C.
3. What fraction of the pattern block is shaded? _______ What fraction is not shaded? _______
Center B
1 1
4. Use your geoboards to create and find a way to shade in of shape A and of shape B.
4 2
. . A . . . . . . B . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Dostaler 95
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
1
5. Only of the whole shape is drawn. Use the geoboard to create the whole and draw it below.
4
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
1
6. Only of the whole shape is drawn. Use the geoboard to create the whole and draw it below.
2
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Center C
Draw in the shape that represents the fraction. Use pattern blocks to help you.
1 3
Example: If is , this shape is
4 4
1 7
7. If is , build
8 8
________________________________________________________________________
1 2
8. If is , build
3 3
________________________________________________________________________
2 4
9. If is , build
6 6
________________________________________________________________________
1
10. If is , build 2
2
________________________________________________________________________
Dostaler 96
11. What is the numerator for the fraction you built in question #7? What does this number represent?
____________________________________________________________________________
_ ______________ ____________ _________
_ ______________ ____________ _________
_ ___
12. What is the denominator in the fraction you
built in question #8? What does this number
represent?
____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
Center D
13. Shade four equal parts in each container. Write the fraction you shaded.
________________ ________________ ________________
14. Order the fractions you found above from greatest to least.
______________________________________________________________________________
15. There are 8 candy bars and 6 people. Which picture shows how each person can get an equal
share?
Dostaler 97
A.
B.
C.
16. Using the fraction strips, draw the lines and shade an equivalent fraction to what is provided.
Write the fraction in the boxes provided.
1 2
Example: is the same as is equivalent to
3 6
3
is the same as is equivalent to
6
____________________________________________________________________________
3
4
____________________________________________________________________________
1
8
Name: ___Madison______________________________ Date: _____11/12/10________________
Summing Up Fractions
Summative Assessment Corrected Recording Sheet Score: (_45_/45 pts)
Center A (11 points total)
1. If the value of is one whole, what fraction is each of the following? Write the fraction
on the line. (1 point each)
_______½ ______ _______1/3________ ______1/6_______
(2 points) Build one whole using (2 points) Build one whole using
(2 points)
2. Which two pattern blocks show the same amount shaded? What is the fraction shaded? ___½ __
A. B. C.
(2 points)
3. What fraction of the pattern block is shaded? __4/6_ What fraction is not shaded? __2/6__
Center B (6 points total)

1 1
4. Use your geoboards to create and find a way to shade in of shape A and of shape B. (2 points)
4 2
. . A . . . . . . B . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
1
5. Only of the whole shape is drawn. Use the geoboard to create the whole and draw below. (2
4
points)
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
1
6. Only of the whole shape is drawn. Use the geoboard to create the whole and draw below. (2
2
points)
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . .
Center C (10 points total)
Draw in the shape that represents the fraction. Use pattern blocks to help you. (1 point each)
1 3
Example: If is , this shape is
4 4
1 7
7. If is , build
8 8
________________________________________________________________________
1 2
8. If is , build
3 3
________________________________________________________________________
2 4
9. If is , build
6 6
________________________________________________________________________
1
10. If is , build 2
2
________________________________________________________________________
11. What is the numerator for the fraction you built in question #7? What does this number represent?
______The numerator for my fraction is 7. This number shows that there are 7 pattern blocks out of the
8 total to be drawn._______________________________(3 points)
12. What is the denominator in the fraction you
built in question #8? What does this number
represent?
______The denominator for my fraction
is 3. This number shows that there are 3 total
parts in the whole
fraction._________________________________________________ (3 points)
Center D (18 points total)
13. Shade four equal parts in each container. Write the fraction you shaded. (2 points each)
____4/4 or 1_____ ________4/5 ______ ____4/6 or 2/3____
14. Order the fractions you found above from greatest to least. (2 points)
____________4/6, 4/5, 4/4 ________________________________________________________
15. There are 8 candy bars and 6 people. Which picture shows how each person can get an equal
share? (1 point)
A.
B.
C.
16. Using the fraction strips, draw the lines and shade an equivalent fraction to what is provided.
Write the fraction in the boxes provided. (3 points each)
1 2
Example: is the same as is equivalent to
3 6
3
is the same as is equivalent to ½
6
____________________________________________________________________________
3
is the same as is equivalent to 6/8
4
____________________________________________________________________________
1
is the same as is equivalent to 2/16
8

Nicole Dostaler - Fourth Grade - Fractions Unit

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Nicole Dostaler - Fourth Grade - Fractions Unit

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Fun with Fractions,

A Grade Four Math Unit

ED569C – Math for Grades 4-6

Unit Plan Summary

Teacher(s) Nicole Dostaler

Grade Level Grade 4

Unit of Study Mathematics – Fractions

Duration of the Unit 5 Lessons

The Learning Goal(s) for this unit is as follows:

The fourth grade students will—

 recognize fractions and construct unit wholes using various manipulatives,

including geoboards, pattern blocks and fraction strips.

manipulatives, including geoboards, pattern blocks and fraction strips.

Summary of the Unit

their understanding of fractional concepts.

Summary of the Lessons

Lesson 1: Problem Solving Fractions

the vocabulary terms: numerator and denominator. The students complete a

be assessed by a formative 3-point rubric in the areas of problem solving,

communication/visual representation, reasoning, connections, and number sense.

Lesson 2: Exploring and Adding Equivalent Fractions

by the use of an informal formative observational checklist in the areas of problem

solving, representation, connections, and number sense.

Lesson 3: Pattern Block Fractions

pattern blocks, demonstrate recognition of specific fractions, and explain their

understanding of equivalent fractions.

Lesson 4: Visualizing Halves and Fourths

measurement, and geometry during this investigation. As students experiment with

Lesson 5: Summing up Fractions

pattern blocks and fraction strips.

In this lesson, students will be review and be assessed on their understanding of

brainstorming activity to organize and summarize their knowledge on the concepts of

manipulatives as they complete a “Summing Up Fractions” Recording Packet. Students

students will be assessed by an observational performance rubric for their behaviors

during the task, as well as by a summative scoring tool of a corrected “Summing Up

11 points in Center A with pattern blocks, 6 points in Center B utilizing geoboards, 10

National Standards (NCTM, 2002, p. 148)

unit wholes, as parts of a collection, as locations on number lines, and as

divisions of whole numbers; use models, benchmarks, and equivalent forms to

commonly used fractions.

 In grades 3-5, students should create and use representations to organize,

record, and communicate mathematical ideas; select, apply, and translate

among mathematical representations to solve problems; and use

representations to model and interpret physical, social, and mathematical

Connecticut State Standards (CT State Department of Education, 2010, p. 32-35)

 1.3 Use operations, properties and algebraic symbols to determine

equivalence and solve problems.

o GLE4. Represent possible values by using symbols (variables) to

represent quantities in expressions and number sentences. Use

number sentences (equations) to model and solve word problems.

 2.1 Understand that a variety of numerical representations can be used to

describe quantitative relationships.

o GLE7. Construct and use pictures and models to determine and

identify equivalent ratios and fractions.

constructing and using models, pictures and number lines.

compare and order fractional parts of a whole and mixed numbers

o GLE10. Construct and use models, pictures and number lines to

identify wholes and parts of a whole, including a part of a group or

groups, as simple fractions and mixed numbers.

to reasonably estimate measures and quantities.

ten and match number sentences or equations to the problems.

o GLE21. Identify or write number sentences to solve simple

problems involving fractions, decimals (tenths) and mixed numbers

o GLE22. Write contextual problems involving the addition and

What will you do to solve it? I will make a drawing._________________________