Things You'll Need:
- Classical music CDs
- Pencil
- Paper
- Classical sheet music
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Step 1
Download or purchase any classical music (see Resources). The classics such as Mozart and Beethoven are always great picks. Also, download some sheet music to have a visual with the music.
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Step 2
Use the sheet music and actual music to teach students about fractions (see Resources). Each measure in a piece of music is divided into parts. The time signature tells students how many beats are in each measure.
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Step 3
Teach students the different types of notes and their values. Have the student then add and subtract the various wholes, halves, quarters, eighths, sixteenths and any other fractional beats. The answer should equal the time signature in the music.
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Step 4
Try to pick music that has more than one time signature. This will allow you to show how the values of notes change with the time signature. For instance, a whole note has a value of 4 beats in 4/4 time, but only a value of 3 beats in 3/4 time.
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Step 5
Count and clap each measure to help teach students how fractions actually sound. You can have the students actually conduct various parts to see how each fractional note creates whole measures. This will help them relate fractions to something they enjoy.
