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How to Teach Adding Fractions in a Fun Way

Fraction math can be a difficult concept to teach children, as many teachers and parents well know. In order for children to understand adding fractions, they need to be able to “see” the fractions represented physically as models, and they need to be given the opportunity to manipulate these visual models themselves. Engaging the students in a hands-on activity that involves interesting models allows them to conceptualize fractions in a way that textbooks alone cannot do. There are several activities teachers and parents can prepare that children would consider fun.

Things You'll Need

  • Milk chocolate candy bars
  • Candy-coated chocolate pieces of different colors
  • Magnetic fraction bars
  • Chalkboard and chalk
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Instructions

    • 1

      Show the children how a chocolate candy bar has 12 parts by unwrapping one of the candy bars and holding it up. Break the chocolate bar in half and let the children count the number of sections in each half so they see that each half has six sections.

    • 2

      Demonstrate how breaking the candy bar into pieces equals various fractions, and how each break reduces the fraction. Use the magnetic fraction bar and chalk to illustrate the fractions on the chalkboard. Break the chocolate bar down to 12 pieces and write the fractions on the board, from one-half to one-twelfth. Allow students to eat the candy bars.

    • 3

      Pass out small bags of candy-coated chocolate pieces to pairs of students. Have students divide the candy by color and determine what fraction of the whole each color makes up. Assign a color to each student and help the children decide which fraction the color represents. For example, if there are 24 total candies and eight of them are blue, the blues are eight-twenty-fourths, or one-third, of the candies. Have each student write his fraction on the board then join with another student. Have the two students add their fractions together. Continue mixing and matching students and colors so that the children can practice adding up different fractions. Allow the students to eat their candies.

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