Essay on Instructional Unit: Lesson Plans

The following lesson plans are included in the instructional unit.

5.1.      Lesson Plan I

Topic: Fractions and Mixed Numbers: Equivalent Fractions

Grade Level: 5

Objectives: By performing this activity, students will become familiar with equivalent fractions and have a meaningful experience to relate them to.  It is hoped that students will become more experienced in using fractions and have a better understanding of them.

Materials and resources: math books, pencils, paper, colored markers, 30 colored cards with fractions for the Fraction Fishing game.

Pre-activities: students will review the term equivalent fractions, and the terms numerator and denominator.

Activities:

• Type the missing numbers in order to complete the pattern of equivalent fractions: 1/2, 2/4, 3/_, 4/_, 5/_.
• Type the missing number in order to make fraction equal: 1/4 =_/12
• Which of the following fractions is equivalent to the fraction 4/6:

8/12; 6/10; 7/9; 2/3

• Review fractions: you can multiply the numerator and denominator by the same number in order to get an equivalent fraction: 1/6=2/12=3/18=4/24, etc.
• Use a pencil and a paper to draw the line and solve the problem: the first red line shows 2/4, draw the second red line which will show 1/3.
• Find the fraction on the third blue line on the cards given by the teacher (4/8).
• The game Fraction Fishing. This game will help to review equivalent fractions. The rules of the game: students are divided in groups of 4. Each student has five cards with fractions on one side. There are 30 colored cards in the deck; each pair of equivalent fractions is of different color. One of the students in the group goes first and asks another student if he/she has a fraction that is equivalent to his/her fraction. He asks: “do you have a fraction that is equivalent to 2/3?” The student in the group who has a fraction equivalent to 2/3 says “yes, I do”. If none of the students has it, the student who asked this question goes fishing for fractions. Students should get a pair and the entire group should check these fractions in order to make sure that the fractions are equivalent. The winner of this game is a student with the most pairs of equivalent fractions.

Assessment: At the end of the lesson, the students will be given a set of review questions in the form of testing. When students complete 10-15 problems, their answers will be checked. The informal observation will be based on the participation of the students in the Fraction Fishing game.

5.2.      Lesson Plan II

Topic: Fractions and Mixed Numbers: Reduction Fractions to Simplest Forms

Grade Level: 5

Objectives: Students will be taught to reduce fractions to the simplest form. They will be able to know definition of the terms reduction of fractions, fraction in the simplest form and common divisor.

Materials and resources: math books, pencils, paper, black and white stones.

Pre-activities: Students will be explained the rules:

1. A fraction is written in the simplest form when it has the smallest numerator and denominator.
2. To put a fraction in the simplest form, it is necessary to find the largest number that can divide both the numerator and the denominator and to divide both the numerator and the denominator of the fraction by that number.

Activities:

• Write the fractions in the simplest form: 4/6, 4/8, 9/18, 1/2, 1/4, 12/26.
• Use black and white stones and group these objects in different ways in order to express the fraction 12/16 (3/7, 6/9, 8/9, 9/12). Students find the common divisors and divide the numerator and the denominator by the common divisors 2 and 4.

12/16 = 12:2/16:2 = 6/8 and 12/16 = 12:4/16:4 = 3/4

The result: 6/8 and ¾””are equivalent to the fraction 12/16. It means 12/16 can be changed to 6/8 or ¾ without changing its value

Assessment: students will be assessed in groups, and individually. They will be given tests with similar assignments.

5.3.      Lesson Plan III

Topic: Addition of Fractions with Unlike Dominators

Grade Level: 5

Objectives: Students will be able to learn how to add fractions with unlike dominators.

Materials and resources: math books, fraction cards, colored pencils, online program Adding Fractions with Different Denominators.

Pre-activities: The students review addition of fraction with the same dominators. Then, the students are taught the rules of adding fractions with unlike dominators:

1. Find what the Least Common Denominator (LCD) of the given fractions is.
2. Rename the fractions to have the LCD.
3. Add the numerators of the fractions.
4. Simplify the Fraction (Adding Fractions: Unlike Dominators, 2012).

Activities:

• Add 2/3 + 2/9 = ____. Use your colored pencils to shoe 2/3 and 2/9 as models. Rename the fractions using a common dominator. 2/3 = 6/9; 6/9 + 2/9 = 8/9
• Add 4/5 + 3/10; 2/4 + 3/12; 5/9 + 3/6, using the same models to explain the operation of addition fractions with unlike dominators.
• The students are given special tasks to practice solving problems with adding fractions by means of a computer program. The link to this program is here: http://www.aaamath.com/fra66kx2.htm

Assessment: Student will be asked the following questions:

1. How do you add questions?
2. What real-world example can you give where you add fractions to solve a problem?
3. How can you use visual representations for adding and subtracting fractions?

In addition, the students are given fraction cards in which they can find different problems ”“ they choose only the problems with addition of fractions. They are given 10 minutes to solve these problems.