Fraction Fun Read Aloud

Do you need a fun fraction mini lesson for upper elementary students? Check out the book, Fraction Fun by David A. Adler! I love that this book gives examples of real world situations in which we use fractions! This way our students get to see the reasons WHY we need to understand and compute fractions. We use fractions for so many parts of real life-cooking, our age, pizza, books, money and more!

Fraction Fun is made up of engaging activities for helping to teach kids about the basics of fractions. It is easy to follow and the activities are FUN! I’ve been using this book now for a while when I introduce fractions to my students. This is always one of my favorite weeks of the school year!

Make Fractions FUN!

During math it’s always fun to plan hands-on assignments to engage students. Teaching about fractions is the PERFECT hands-on math activity! There are so many different ways to teach them and ways to do it! Check out this other post about 4 Activities for Teaching Fractions for more ideas.

Here’s How I teach a Fraction Mini lesson:

I like to use the book, Fraction Fun as a read aloud for 1-2 weeks when I introduce basic fractions to my class. I have created some supplemental activities to accompany this book. They simply make my fun fraction mini lesson run more smoothly. I want to share those tips with you today and how I teach a fun fraction mini lesson!!

Day 1 Mini Lesson

In the book, Fraction Fun by David A. Adler, the first activity is called pizza math. I typically do this activity with the whole group using these templates. Students color and work with eighths. This is a tad different than In the book, when they use paper plates and have to draw the lines themselves. I tried to make the activity similar and even easier for students to follow.

Day 2 Mini Lesson

Next, I use the 4th activity from Fraction Fun using grid paper. I use this template for students to model rectangles to fractions. I like to use the pre-drawn templates versus having them start from scratch so that we are all on the same page when learning this new skill.

We typically do the fraction for eighths together as a class. Then, for active engagement, students complete sixths and twelfths more independently so I can see if they understand the concept. If students get finished early, they can create a set of their own. I just have students break down the models to show different fractions that can be made with them.

Small Groups

During small groups this week, we do the second activity from Fraction Fun which discusses weighing money. I bring in several different coins including pennies, nickels, and dimes. Then, we practice weighing the coins and comparing them to each other. The students really seem to enjoy this hands-on activity!

Math Centers

Finally, let’s discuss how I use the activities from Fraction Fun in my math centers accordingly. In one of my centers during week 2 (after all students have participated in the money small group with me) students practice the third activity from the book. The third activity is all about weighing tissues, envelopes, and pencils. Students then answer questions that go along with the book and discuss vocabulary having to do with fractions. The example page from the Fraction Fun Set is perfect for students to glue in their interactive math notebooks to refer back to.

Wrapping Up

After this mini lesson, I like to give my students a google form to answer some learning questions and see what they took away from the week! I absolutely want them to believe that fractions are FUN by the time we are finished with the week!

What are your favorite books and activities for teaching fractions?