Elementary Math Series: Making Meaning of Fractions: Grades 2-6

Making Meaning of Fractions: Grades 2-6
Presenter: Cheryl Fricchione

Fractions … just the word tends to cause strong reactions from students and teachers alike. They can be notoriously difficult to both learn and teach but are also crucial to students’ work with proportional reasoning that begins in 6th grade. We often teach fractions as referencing part of a whole, but did you know that there are actually five different interpretations of fractions? Yes, the part-whole interpretation of fractions is considered fundamental for developing an understanding of fraction concepts. However, research has shown that when students rely on this one interpretation their ability to generalize and to work with fraction concepts is limited. Therefore, addressing the other interpretations is important to develop a deep understanding of fractions. In this workshop, we will make meaning of all five interpretations of fractions.