Comparing Fractions

Est. Class Sessions: 2

Summarizing the Lesson

To practice comparing fractions, ask students to play the game Fraction Hex in groups of two or three.

To play the game, each student group will need the Fraction Hex Game pages from the Student Activity Book. If students are using the Fraction Hex 1 Game Board they will need the Halves, Thirds, and Sixths Models. If they are using the Fraction Hex 2 Game Board they will need the Halves, Fourths, and Eighths Models. The same spinner is used with both game boards.

Read the directions as a class. Use a display of the Fraction Hex 1 Game Board to demonstrate how the game is played.

After the first spin for player one, ask:

My game pieces are both on 1/2 and the spinner landed on Greater Than or Equal To. What strategies can I use to compare the fractions on the game board to 1/2? (Possible response: I used the the Fraction Chart to see that both 4/6 and 5/6 are greater than 1/2. 1/3 is less than 1/2) [See Figure 5.]
Look at the game board. Where do you think I should move? (Possible response: You can either move one of your pieces to 5/6 or you can move one to 4/6.)

Continue to play this game for several more spins, using similar discussion prompts until student groups are ready to play independently.

As students play the game, encourage them to use their fraction circle pieces, the Comparing Fractions to One-Half chart, and the Halves, Thirds, and Sixths Models or the Halves, Fourths, and Eighths Models to make their decisions.