Fractions Made Visual

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Website: Intel Fractions Made Visual

Performance Assessment Link: Intel Fractions Made Visual Assessment
Rubric Link: Intel Fractions Made Visual Rubric
Presentation Checklist: Intel Fractions Made Visual Checklist

Fractions Made Visual

Frankle, D. (n.d.). Fractions Made Visual. Intel Education Designing Effective Projects.

Retrieved from http://www.intel.com/content/www/us/en/education/k12/project-design/unit-plans/fractions-made-visual.html
Web Link

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Summary

This website offers a problem-based learning (PBL) challenge, titled Fractions Made Visual, through which students learn the importance of math accuracy revolving around the topic of fractions. They learn that knowing how to add, subtract, multiply, and divide fractions makes life easier for everyone. Students study a real world profession that uses fractions as part of the job. They must research, summarize, draw conclusions, and report back on the importance of knowing fractions in that profession. as well as in their own lives, and include examples of fraction problems used while performing that job.

Fractions Made Visual uses the following curriculum framing questions:

Essential Question

Does accuracy really matter that much?

Unit Questions

Are fractions important or would we be better off without them?

How are fractions used on the job and are they needed to get the job done right?

How can understanding fractions make your life easier?

Content Questions

What is a fraction?

How do you add, subtract, multiply, and divide fractions?

What is the difference between a numerator and a denominator?

How do you change a mixed numeral into an improper fraction?

Fractions Made Visual offers detailed plans, including how to introduce the topic of fractions in the real world, presenting the problem-based scenario, the variety of ways students can research and collect information on this topic, how to best help your students draw conclusions and make connections based on their research, creating multimedia presentations and, finally, how to deliver oral presentations. In addition, this PBL includes ideas for differentiated instruction regarding special needs students, gifted/talented students, and ELL students. 

A detailed rubric and performance assessment plan are included with this PBL (see links at top of this page). Students are also asked to record their responses to the various questions posed by the teacher in their math journals, and to meet with their teacher on a periodic basis to check their progress and receive teacher feedback. In addition, students are given a presentation checklist which provides guidance on what specific information needs to be addressed through their presentation (link above). 

Teaching Idea:  Problem-Based Learning

Fractions Made Visual is an extremely thorough, well thought-out, problem-based learning challenge for 5th graders. It engages students, activates prior knowledge, focuses students' thinking, guides research so it is effective, and aids students in developing solutions with reasoned explanations. I will use this PBL to successfully connect the topic of fractions with the real world and in everyday life so that my students will see value in learning fractions. They will need to develop several real world fraction problems and solutions that make clear the connection between the profession the are researching and themselves. In this way, students must reflect on what evidence they have gathered, what they have learned, and how they reasoned through their final solutions.

I will modify Fractions Made Visual in a few ways. First, I will skip the "Creating and Publishing a Newsletter" activity as it is not the main focus of the PBL and it is quite extensive. I will use other whole class or individual lessons to offer students the hands-on experiences dealing with fractions, notation, and equivalency which this activity provides. Second, this PBL has the teacher assign professions to students. I will develop a list of 10 or so appropriate professions which use fractions on the job. Then, instead of assigning one, I will allow my students to pick from this list which profession they would like to study. Third, as currently set up, Fractions Made Visual has students work individually on this PBL, not as part of a collaborative team. I feel there is great benefit to collaborative learning and, thus, will have my students work in teams. These small groups will be formed based on the profession each student chooses to study.

So that students have a clear understanding of what will be expected of them and how they will be assessed, I will follow the provided rubric, performance assessment plan, and presentation checklist offered with this PBL. As long as each group's presentation is a multimedia one, my students may choose any means and style they want to present their findings. They may incorporate drama, art, music, poetry, rap or whatever learning styles best fit the members of their group. The sky is the limit!

This lesson corresponds with Math TEKS 5.1(A), (B), (D), (G); 5.3(H), (I), (J), (L) and Technology TEKS 5.1(A); 5.2(A), (B), (F); 5.3(A), (B), (C), (D); 5.4(B), (C); 5.5(F).

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