Lesson 45: Fraction Word Problems
Lesson Objectives
- Define fractions as equal parts of a whole using manipulatives and pictures
- Write fractions as the number of shaded parts compared to the total number of parts
- Write fractions for shapes that have been divided into equal parts
- Divide pictures of real-world objects into fractional parts
- See the relationship of division and fractions
Materials
- Extend Workbook (Page 45)
- Fraction manipulatives (e.g. base ten blocks, fraction strips, pizza fractions, shape fractions)
- Highlighters, markers, or crayons
- Whiteboards and dry erase markers
- Rulers
Step 1: Warm Up (5 min)
Review the vocabulary for today’s lesson. Show the parts of a fraction (number above the line, number below the line, and show some actual examples) and read the fractions 1/3 is one-third, 2/2 is two-halves, or one whole, ¾ is three-fourths) and provide a visual example of each. Have students find an example of fractions in their everyday lives. Give examples (e.g., At the end of the third quarter in a football game, the game is 3/4 complete. After the seventh inning in baseball, the game is 7/9 complete.).
Step 2: Vocab Review (5 min)
Review prior vocabulary: rectangle and partition, halves, thirds, fourths, fraction, sections, whole, parts, and shaded. Remind students that they will be learning more about fractions today, and fractions are equal parts of a whole.
Step 3: Model (5 min)
Now, move on to visual examples of fractions, showing various examples (1/4, 1/3, 1/2, 2/4), this time using real life examples (slices of pizza, using Kit Kat candy, parts of a cookie). Create fractions using these real-life examples/visuals (half a cookie, two-fourths of a Kit Kat bar), three-sixths of a pizza). Under each fraction, write the fraction in word form. Shade in the fraction listed for each fraction visual. Remind students that fractions are smiliar to division: In fractions, the whole is the total number of equal parts, the bottom number. The top number is how many shaded parts we have. The parts have to be equal. For 2/4, review that there are four parts, and two are shaded. Remember, the bottom number tells the number of equal parts, and the top number tells how many are being used. Review each fraction, going over vocabulary: whole, parts, and shaded. Next, draw two different rectangles with two different fractions next to each and demonstrate drawing and shading the fractional parts.
Step 4: Guided Practice (5 min)
Before students practice shading in fractions, review that both the number of parts we are talking about and the total number of parts that make up the whole are the same. Write a fraction on the board, and have students write on their white boards (3/4). Tell them to draw ¾ of a pizza (3 slices shaded). Remind students that the bottom number means the total equal parts of the fraction (4), ask what the top number means (how many parts they have), and ask how many parts should be shaded (3). Have students work in pairs, giving them fractions to work through: write the fraction, draw and shade the fractional parts within each visual, then shade in the correct number of parts. Have students practice drawing and shading in their own fractional parts on with the visuals given, and writing the fraction with a few different examples.
Step 5: Student Practice (5 min)
Go to Student Workbook Page (45). Read each word problem. Look at the pictures on this activity sheet. Trace the lines on each visual and shade the number of parts specified. For the first one, trace over the line creating two halves. Determine how many parts there are total (2) and write this for the bottom number in the fraction. Shade one half of the cookie and write one for the top number, thus the fraction is ½. Read each word problem, trace the lines to make equal parts and then determine how many parts should be shaded. Then, write the fraction in the spaces provided.
Step 6: Wrap Up (5 min)
To wrap up the lesson, review the learning objectives and core vocabulary words again and ask your students about their experience.
