Example - Lesson Plan [Show Teaching Plan Only]

Objectives

Describe what a fraction represents and what a numerator and denominator are.
Given a fraction written using symbols, write a corresponding sentence.
Give examples of where fractions appear in every day life.
Given a picture of shapes, write a fraction describing the relationship between the areas.
Given two fractions, identify which is larger.

Teaching Plan

What a fraction describes (40 minutes)

The objective of the first lesson is to understand what a fraction describes.

Read the children's book to your class, Only One (Harshman, 1993) and define fractions as numbers that can describe when an object is a part of something larger.

Ask a few students to describe how they are a part of a larger family group using a sentence like: "I am one out of a family of ___." Write their answers on the board.
Ask students to describe how many members of their family are boys and girls by using sentences like: "___ out of my family of ___ are girls."Write their answers on the board.

Go through the eModule section What a Fraction Describes with students working individually on computers or as a group using a computer projection system.

Fractions in Real Life (45 minutes)

The objective of the second lesson is to describe real-life situations using fractions.

Ask a couple of students to explain to the class what a fraction describes.

Ask students to look at a collection of objects in the room (for example, a fish tank, coat rack, book shelf).
Ask students to shade parts of shapes on a worksheet to create a representation that describes a fractional part of the items in the collection.

Ask students to share their representations with the other students. Askthe other students to use the generic form to describe the fractional part of the collection.
For example, a student might say:
- Four of the twenty coats on the rack are red.
- Three of the nine fish have stripes.
The number of pieces in the shapes should show the appropriate size of the collection with sections shaded to represent the part being described.

Write on the board, the numeric abbreviations of the fractions that students shared and ask students to describe what the parts of a fraction represent.
Students should recognize that:
- The top number represents the number of things being described.
- The bottom number represents the number of things in the group.
- The line in-between abbreviates the words "out of".

Go through the eModule section Fractions in Real Life with individual students working on computers or as a group using a computer projection system.

Representing Fractions (30 minutes)

The focus of the third lesson is to graphically represent a fraction.

Review with the class what a fraction describes, and how a fraction can abbreviate a verbal or graphical description of when something is a part of something larger.

Go through the eModule section Representing Fractions with individual students working on computers or as a group using a computer projection system.

Relating Fractions (35 minutes)

The purpose of the fourth lesson is to compare the size of two fractions.

Review the content from the previous three lessons.

Go through the eModule section Relating Fractions with individual students working on computers or as a group using a computer projection system.

Review

Review the content periodically to ensure that students understand what a fraction describes and how to abbreviate those descriptions in numeric form.

Assessment

Ask students to complete the online assessment. If a child has difficultyreading you might have an adult go through it with them, reading the questionsand typing the student's answers.

Use this rubric (<link to files>) to guide your scoring of the online assessment.

Worksheets

Additional practice (4 pgs) (<link to files>)

Credits

Lesson Design	Jim Dorward, Dan Scofield, Joel Duffin
Web Development	Dan Scofield
Applet Development	NLVM Team
Images	www.geekphilosopher.com

Correlation to Standards

Correlation to NCTM Standards

Targeted NCTM content objectives are:

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.

Targeted NCTM process objectives are:

Use the language of mathematics to express mathematical ideas precisely.
Recognize and apply mathematics in contexts outside of mathematics.

Ask a couple of students to explain to the class what a fraction describes.
Ask students to look at a collection of objects in the room (for example, a fish tank, coat rack, book shelf). Ask students to shade parts of shapes on a worksheet to create a representation that describes a fractional part of the items in the collection.
Ask students to share their representations with the other students. Askthe other students to use the generic form to describe the fractional part of the collection. For example, a student might say: Four of the twenty coats on the rack are red. Three of the nine fish have stripes. The number of pieces in the shapes should show the appropriate size of the collection with sections shaded to represent the part being described.
Write on the board, the numeric abbreviations of the fractions that students shared and ask students to describe what the parts of a fraction represent. Students should recognize that: The top number represents the number of things being described. The bottom number represents the number of things in the group. The line in-between abbreviates the words "out of".
Go through the eModule section Fractions in Real Life with individual students working on computers or as a group using a computer projection system.

Read the children's book to your class, Only One (Harshman, 1993) and define fractions as numbers that can describe when an object is a part of something larger.
Ask a few students to describe how they are a part of a larger family group using a sentence like: "I am one out of a family of ___." Write their answers on the board. Ask students to describe how many members of their family are boys and girls by using sentences like: "___ out of my family of ___ are girls."Write their answers on the board.
Go through the eModule section What a Fraction Describes with students working individually on computers or as a group using a computer projection system.

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