Decimals and Percentages - Decimals as Fractions (2) - Presentation

In a comprehensive lesson on converting decimals to fractions, Year 5 students delve deeper into the relationship between these two numerical representations. The lesson revisits the value of digits in decimal numbers, such as 1.37, and encourages students to discuss their understanding of decimals as fractions. The class is then presented with a series of models and activities where they convert decimals into equivalent fractions. For example, they learn that 0.5 is the same as 5/10 or simplified to 1/2. The students are shown how to express decimals like 0.29 and 1.6 as fractions, demonstrating the conversion with models for visual understanding.

The lesson continues with more complex activities, where students are asked to write decimal numbers in various forms, including expanded decimals, fractions, and words. For instance, they learn how to express 2.41 as "two ones, four tenths, and one hundredth" or as the fraction 241/100. Further exercises challenge students to identify and correct misconceptions, such as the incorrect assumption that simply placing the numerator after the decimal point converts a fraction to a decimal. They are provided with examples like 0.8 + 0.08 being equal to 88/100, and are tasked with reasoning exercises that involve converting decimals to mixed numbers and writing them in words. The lesson encourages independent work, where students colour in grids to represent decimals and place values on number lines, deepening their understanding of decimals and fractions.