Fractions - Making a whole activity - Presentation

In an engaging lesson centred around fractions, students are introduced to the concept of making a whole from two halves. The lesson encourages students to recall instances where they have encountered the term 'whole' in everyday life. The initial activities involve visual aids where students are presented with two halves of familiar objects, such as a burger and a football, and are tasked with combining them to form a complete image. This concrete representation of fractions helps to solidify the understanding that when two halves come together, they create a whole.

The lesson then delves deeper into the concept by presenting various shapes cut into halves. Students are challenged to identify which halves fit together to complete the original shape. For example, they discover that two triangular halves form a rectangle, and two rectangular halves create a square when combined. To further reinforce the concept, practical activities are incorporated, where students cut a square piece of paper into halves and then reassemble it. They are also encouraged to experiment with building blocks to explore the different shapes that can be made from two identical halves. The lesson concludes with a reasoning discussion, prompting students to consider the different ways a whole can be split and the various shapes that can result from combining halves in different configurations.