Solve Puzzle D. Each student should receive one clue for the assessment puzzle (Puzzle D). Remind students that they can share their clues only by reading them aloud to the group. Allow time for each group to find a solution to the puzzle. Four possible solutions are shown in Figure 5.
All students should complete at least Puzzles A and B before beginning the assessment using Puzzle D. Puzzle C can be used to challenge groups who complete Puzzles A and B quickly. Encourage groups to find and record more than one solution.
Write Solutions. After finding a solution that all members agree upon, each student will independently complete a copy of the Puzzle Problem page in the Student Activity Book. Students are asked to show the group's solution and to explain the strategies they used to solve the problem.
First, have students read the Math Practices Expectations in the Feedback Box at the bottom of the page. Encourage them to think about how their written solutions will meet these two expectations.
- How will you show your work to meet Math Practices Expectation 5? (We will show our solution in a drawing and write a number sentence. We will tell how we started. Then we will tell the steps we took to solve the puzzle.)
- How will you show that your answer is reasonable? (We will write how our solution matches each clue.)
At this point students individually write a paragraph describing their group's solution strategies on the Puzzle Problem page. Encourage students to write their paragraph so they meet the Expectations at the bottom of the page.
As students work, continue to ask questions similar to those above.
If students are vague, ask:
- Think about how you would tell the principal or your parents how your group solved the problem. What do they need to know to understand the problem? Do they know about the colors and sizes of the circle pieces?
- How can you make your explanation so clear that they could solve the problem exactly the way you did?
Use Puzzle D and the Puzzle Problem pages in the Student Activity Book to assess students' progress toward representing fractions using circle pieces [E1], using words and numbers to name fractions [E2], and writing number sentences from area models of fractions [E6].
Use students' written responses to assess their abilities to solve problems and communicate solutions using these Math Practices Expectations:
- MPE3.
- Check for reasonableness. I look back at my solution to see if my answer makes sense. If it does not, I try again.
- MPE5.
- Show my work. I show or tell how I arrived at my answer so someone else can understand my thinking.
Have students use the Student-to-Student Feedback Box on the Puzzle Problem pages to provide peer or self-assessment.
Use the Teacher-to-Student Feedback Box on the Puzzle Problem pages to provide your feedback to students.
If any students have difficulty writing a paragraph, ask them to talk with you or another adult about the process their group used to solve the problem. Ask them to describe out loud each step using the fraction circle pieces and how they checked their answers. You can use this oral report as their assessment or as a way to help them organize their thoughts before writing them down.
