Things You'll Need:
- Construction paper
- Scissors
- Laminating machine
- Dry-erase board or chalk board
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Step 1
Trace a large circle onto a piece of construction paper. You can use a plastic lid. Try to find one about 6 inches in diameter. Each child will need one circle.
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Step 2
Laminate the circle, then cut it out. Next, cut the laminated circle in half, then in half again so that you have four equal parts.
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Step 3
Pass the cut circles out to each student.
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Step 1
Tell the students that fractions have two parts: A numerator and denominator. The numerator is the number on top, and the denominator is the number on the bottom. Remind them that "d" stands for "down," which will help them remember.
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Step 2
Ask the students to count how many pieces of the circle they have on their desks. Tell them to show you by holding up the correct number of fingers. Look to make sure each student is holding up four fingers.
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Step 3
Write a fraction bar on the board, then write the number four as the denominator. Explain that this number tells you how many parts are in the whole. In this case, how many parts the circle is made up of.
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Step 4
Explain that the top number of a fraction, or numerator, tells you how many parts are left in the whole after some are removed. Ask the students to remove one part of their circles, and then write the number 3 on top of the fraction. Tell the students they have "three-fourths" of a circle on their desks now.
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Step 5
Erase the 3 and write a number 2 as the numerator. Ask the students to show you what that number looks like using the circle pieces. They should all remove two parts of the circle. See if any student can figure out that two-fourths also equals one-half.
