Decimals - Making a Whole - Presentation

In an engaging presentation about decimals, students are invited to explore the concept of making a whole using various visual aids and interactive activities. The lesson begins by posing thought-provoking questions such as how many tenths, hundredths, and thousandths make up one whole, encouraging students to discuss and conceptualise the decimal system. The presentation uses hundred squares and a rekenrek—a counting frame with 100 beads—to visually represent decimal values and their relationship to a whole number. Students are tasked with identifying the number of hundredths shaded on the hundred square and determining how many additional hundredths are needed to complete the whole.

Through a series of activities, pupils are guided to deepen their understanding of decimals by filling in the blanks to show the sum of hundredths on both sides of the rekenrek, ensuring the total equals one whole. The exercises are designed to reinforce the idea that 100 hundredths make a whole and to illustrate how different combinations of hundredths can be added together to achieve this. Additionally, part-whole models are used to further illustrate the concept, where students complete the models to represent one whole, using decimal fractions. This hands-on approach aids in grasping the relationship between tenths, hundredths, and making a whole, while also providing opportunities for reasoning by challenging students to explain their answers and understandings of the decimal system.