Teach Fractions (6) |
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Lesson 6. Converting fractions to a common denominator (placing on number line). |
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SUMS Fractions 6 video guide (YouTube) |
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Objective. To teach the student the skill of converting fractions to a common denominator - an essential skill needed later for adding and subtracting fractions. To show students graphically how this allows fractions to be ordered and placed on a number line. |
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The activity is arranged as a game. Students are not shown how to convert fractions to a common denominator. Whenever they make a mistake, however, they are given a strong clue using a graphic that relates the initial fraction and the desired answer. |
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| NB. This is an "age-neutral" form of the popular SUMS Website and iTunes App which is called "Fraction Monkeys". Go to www.fractionmonkeys.co.uk (free resource - see also the Fraction Monkeys video guide) if you do not mind monkeys hanging on your number line! | |
The first screen should be used to show what is meant by "converting to a common denominator". The teacher can also usefully suggest how the top and bottom numbers are multiplied by the same number so that their size is not changed. It can be useful to revisit the SUMS Fractions 5 activity first as it shows simplifying fractions - essentially the reverse process. |
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The activity sets the challenge of hanging a fraction on a number line where, at times, the denominator is different to that of the original fraction. The aim is for students to become so familiar with the simplest cases that they are learned (as with times tables). |
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The key learning point comes when a mistake is made. The fraction falls and then a graphic is shown. This is designed to show clearly how the original fraction can be changed into the one needed. When one set of fractions is completed, another number line using a different denominator replaces it. |
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