1 Parts and Wholes and Xs and Os! Standards: M3NF1.

Understand a fraction 1/b as the quantity formed by 1 part when a whole is partitioned into b equal parts; understand a fraction a/b as the quantity formed by a parts of size 1/b. Essential Questions: How can I expand my understanding of the parts and wholes of fractions? Materials: Tic-Tac-Toe activities materials: o Copies of the Tic-Tac-Toe Fractions board (see attached) o Pencils o Lined paper o White paper o Pattern blocks o Crayons o Yard stick or tape measure o Clay or play-doh Guided math group materials: o Small dry erase boards, markers, erasers o Pattern blocks o Lined paper o Pencils Independent math group materials: o Math board with fraction activities o Math journal o Pencils Introduction (10 minutes): After reviewing the previous nights homework, the teacher will inform students that they will be split into their previously-designated groups today as they continue their work on fractions. The concept behind this lessons standard had been introduced the previous day, so the teacher will ask the students to recall what they remember about partitions, parts, and wholes in relation to fractions. The teacher will then refer students to the chart on the wall that identifies which groups of students will be engaging in which activities. One group of students, who had demonstrated mastery of the standard in the unit pre-test, will use the entire 45-minute work session to complete three Tic-Tac-Toe Board activities as part of their curriculum compacting learning contracts. The other two groups of students will alternate between two 20-minute sessions: one independent work session and one guided math group session with the teacher. Work Session (45 minutes): The students who are engaging in learning contracts for this fractions unit will spend the entire work session on choosing and completing three Tic-Tac-Toe board activities. Materials will be provided in an easily accessible place, and the students will follow the expectations clearly explained in their learning contracts, such as working independently and asking group members for assistance if needed while the teacher is working

2 with other students. Depending on the pace at which these students work, they may be allotted time in the following lesson to finish their work if they are unable to complete it in a single lesson, as long as they have remained on task. In the meanwhile, the other two groups of students, or those who had not demonstrated mastery of the standard on the pre-test, will split their time between two other activities. One group of students will complete fractions-related activities posted on the class math bulletin board. They will use their math journals to complete the work. The other group will engage in hands-on exploration of the parts and wholes of fractions with the teacher in a round-table setting. They will use dry erase boards and pattern blocks to practice identifying the parts and wholes of fractions and to practice creating pictures and shapes, given the parts and wholes of fractions from the teacher. After 20 minutes, the groups will switch activities. During the five-minute transition between the two work sessions, the teacher will briefly conference with the students who are working on the Tic-Tac-Toe board. Closing (5 minutes): At the end of the lesson, the teacher will ask all students to put away any materials they used and to return to their seats. The class will revisit their whole class discussion from the introduction to discuss further what partitions, parts, and wholes are and to provide examples from the work they completed today. Differentiation: This lesson plan serves as a differentiated curriculum compacting tool for third graders in a general education classroom. A pretest would have been administered on the first day of the fractions unit, and students who demonstrated mastery of standard M3NF1 would complete the Tic-Tac-Toe board included in this lesson. While this is geared toward gifted students, any student who would had already mastered the concepts in this standard also would have the opportunity to engage in this curriculum compacting activity. This Tic-Tac-Toe board would serve as one element of the curriculum compacting learning contract and would constitute those students learning activities for this particular lesson. The activities included on the board allow for differentiation of process and products and address a wide variety of learning styles along with multiple intelligences. While these students will be focusing on the same content as the rest of the class, they will be exploring the content at a more rapid pace, to greater depth, independently, and with more complexity by applying the understandings they already have to a variety of potentially new contexts. Assessment: A rubric (see attached) will be used to assess students engagement in and successful completion of three Tic-Tac-Toe board activities. Discussion: According to Karnes and Bean (2009), students should be given opportunities to achieve similar learning goals through differentiated means and by making their own choices when possible (p. 649). Through the use of a Tic-Tac-Toe board, teachers can design a wide selection of possible activities that will target a range of students learning needs (Karnes & Bean, 2009, p. 649). While the activities usually revolve around one particular topic, as in this lesson, they vary by process and product. Gifted students learning needs vary significantly from other students, but even among gifted students, learning needs and preferences vary. The TicTac-Toe board allows students to use what they know about themselves as learners and make

3 appropriate choices about engaging in activities that they would enjoy, that would challenge them, and/or that would suit their learning styles and strengths well.

4 Name: _______________________________________________________________________

Tic-Tac-Toe Fractions
Directions: Choose three in a row to complete. Make sure your name is on all your completed work products. Have fun!

Intrapersonal In a method of your choice, answer these questions: What do you already know about fractions? Do you use fractions outside of school? Explain what about fractions you hope to learn more. Musical Think about how fractions and music notes are related. Write fractions to represent a whole note, a half note, a quarter note, an eighth note, and a sixteenth note. Draw and label each note, and write its corresponding fraction with to it. Bodily-Kinesthetic Measure the length of the hallway outside your classroom. Divide the hallway into three equal-sized parts using accurate measurements. How long is each part? Repeat for four equal-sized parts.

Linguistic Write a one-page school newspaper article to share what our class is presently learning about fractions (wholes, partitions, equalsized parts, etc.). This should be written such that everyone in our school can understand, even the kindergarteners. Naturalistic Choose a plant of interest. Draw what it looks like fully grown, halfway grown, and a quarter of the way grown. Write the corresponding fraction with each drawing. Which stage of growth is considered the whole? Logical-Mathematical In words and drawings, explain the following fractions: 1/5 6/8 3/4 3/3

Spatial Use square pattern blocks to build a larger square, where one pattern block represents 1/4th of the larger square. Draw the larger square that you built. Repeat this process again, but this time, use one pattern block to represent 1/16th of the larger square. Interpersonal Write a one-minute speech to convince your classmates why we need to understand the parts and wholes of fractions. Be prepared to share it!

Artistic Use clay or play-doh to create an item of your choice. Then, divide the item into equalsized parts, and name the fraction to represent each part. The number of divided parts is up to you.

Do any of the fractions share anything in common? Explain.

5 Name: _______________________________________________________________________

Rubric: Tic-Tac-Toe Fractions

Activities selected (circle): Intrapersonal Musical Bodily-Kinesthetic Linguistic Naturalistic Logical-Mathematical Spatial Interpersonal Artistic

Engagement and Participation

Completion

0-1 points The student was rarely on task, if at all, during the work session and put little or no effort into the activities. The student did not complete any of the three activities.

Accuracy

The work products did not demonstrate accuracy, or no work was completed to assess for accuracy.

Neatness and/or Creativity

The work products were sloppy, unorganized, and unoriginal, or no work was completed to assess for neatness and/or creativity.

2-3 points The student was somewhat on task and displayed some degree of diligence during the work session. The student partially completed the activities or completed just one or two fully. The work products demonstrated some degree of accuracy, but mistakes and/or misunderstandings were evident and/or consistent. Work products demonstrated a developing level of neatness, organization, and/or creativity.

4-5 points The student was on task and worked diligently during most or all of the work session. The student completed all three activities fully.

The work products demonstrated complete or almost complete accuracy, with few or no mistakes. Work products were neat, highly organized, creative, and original.

Notes:

Points Earned: _____ points / 20 total points

6 Resource Karnes, F. A. & Bean, S. M. (Eds.). (2009). Methods and materials for teaching the gifted (3rd ed.). Waco, TX: Prufrock Press.