Introducing Fractions-Print and digital activities

Both educators and parents agree that fractions and their operations are one of the most difficult concepts for students to grasp. What makes fractions so challenging for students?

The introduction of the concept of fractions comes with a new vocabulary, new rules, new symbols, and the new concept of values between zero and 1. All this new information is hard to handle. However, when students are presented with visual simulations, activities, and examples from their everyday life they realize that fractions are all around them and they had been using them before learning about them. The vocabulary, the new symbols, and the rules become meaningful through hands-on activities and discussions.

There are a lot of rules concerning fractions and their operations and when students learn fractions as a series of rules they are much more likely to lose interest due to a lack of understanding. This is why is very important to help students gain a concrete understanding of the concept of fractions early on and avoid misconceptions. If misconceptions are not corrected in the beginning they make it difficult for students to understand more advanced concepts such as comparing fractions and operations of fractions.

This resource includes 77 print and 80 digital activity cards to practice

• recognizing fractions as part of a shape
• recognizing fractions as part of a set
• partitioning into equal parts, groups
• Comparing parts to the whole
• Complete 1
• Introducing addition and subtraction of proper like fractions
• Introducing equivalence

How to use the activity cards.

You can use the activity cards as exploration and discussion, warm-ups, practice in groups, pairs or individual practice, homework, or assessment. The print cards can be used with manipulatives like rods, tiles, or discs. Provide objects for the students to use when working with fractions of groups.