Idea 1of 24
Equal parts make a fraction
When does a piece of something have a fraction name?
Today you'll discover
- why the parts must be equal
- what one fourth means
- how to spot a piece that is not a fourth
Think firstA granola bar in 4 pieces, 1 shaded
Is the shaded piece 1/4 of the bar?
Decide first, then press Next. Check that the parts are the same size.
A bar cut into four pieces of different sizes, the biggest one shaded. Then the same bar cut into four equal parts with one shaded and numbered, then named. The last step shows three bars, A, B and C, each with one part shaded.
See the whole ideathe big idea and the key word, in one place
The big idea
A fraction names equal parts of a whole; unequal pieces have no fraction name.
Easy to get wrongCounting pieces is not enough. Four pieces are fourths only if all four are the same size.
Around youA chocolate bar snapped into 6 equal squares: each square is 1/6 of the bar. A pizza cut unevenly has no sixths.
Key words
- whole
- the one thing, or one amount, that is cut into parts: one bar, one pizza, one metre
- equal parts
- parts that are all the same size
Ready to use it?
- Say whether a shape is cut into equal parts.
- Name the fraction a shaded part shows.