One easy activity is to allow students to play a game such as Ratio Blaster. Students have the opportunity to match a ratio at the bottom of the screen such as 1/2 with one of several ratios at the top. They must shoot the space ship with the correct matching ratio, such as 5/10. The game can also be brought to real life. Students are given a ratio and must choose from several other potentially matching ratios on a blackboard.
Use geometry as a tool to create an interesting activity for students. Test students by asking them to match shapes with different proportions to see which one is a perfect replica. Change the size of shapes to give students a challenge. For example, you initially have a triangle with sides of length 3, 4 and 5. The student must choose the matching triangle with three different dimensions such as (9, 12, 15), (9, 16, 25) and (9, 10, 12).
Students can also be advised to covert percentages and then simplify the resulting ratio. Take different percentages such as 20 percent, 17 percent and 66 percent and let students change them to the ratios of 20/100, 17/100 and 66/100. Then ask students to simplify the ratios down to their smallest versions. In this case, the result would be 1/5, 17/100 and 33/50.
Money is a practical example that students can understand for their problems with proportion. Quarters, dimes, nickels and pennies can be used in word problems to help students understand the idea of a ratio of a dollar. Ask students what the result would be when two quarters, two dimes and two nickels are added. Request that the answer be provided in the form of a ratio. In this example, the result would be 80/100 or 4/5.