Fractions: You're Teaching Them Wrong : 15+ Concrete Recommendations

I know this is growing out of control, and lucky for you, I kept the price at $9.95; consider this a bargain!

• Recently added: Why you should NOT make your students draw fractions (they'll stink at it no matter how hard they try), and an excellent alternative to drawing cruddy pies, wobbly bars and squishy squares....

• Complex Fractions: every heard of them? Show this to your kids and they'll develop new strategies for comparing fractions and finding new ones.

* I explain why you should never, ever use the instructions "reduce these fractions" (and what you should definitely say instead....)

• The truth behind the fraction 3/1 and how a major publisher got it soooo wrong!

This has detailed recommendations on how you can vastly improve the way you talk about, model and teach almost all aspects of fractions in the 3rd through 7th grade classroom.

What you WON'T find are worksheets, task cards, “scoot” materials or fractions cards with circles on them, nor will you find “cutesy” graphics. I don’t do cutesy. However, if you are planning on creating cutesy stuff, then these recommendations will definitely give you solid pedagogical ground to stand on. Each of the recommendations is based on either actual research or techniques I have used in my classrooms and shared with my teachers for the last 3 decades. If it inspires you to create a really cool activity, please let me know: I’d love to see it.

Here's what else you'll learn about:

• Why are some ways of naming fractions good, and others are really, really bad? The answer: neuroscience!

• Why is the "pie model" the worst way to represent fractions? Which models are much better (you'll see 3 of them.)

• How can you get beyond "rules" for comparing and ordering fractions and develop flexible and comprehensive strategies?

• Why do we need to use "common denominators" to add and subtract fractions? The answer has to do with cats & dogs!

• How to improve your students' understand of multiplying fractions by getting past "multiplication is repeated addition."

• Why you should use this method for multiplying mixed fractions to avoid common student mistakes.

• How a small change in how your write out one fraction divided by another can result in a great leap in understanding.

• The "Indiana Jones" approach to dividing fractions; you won't believe this actually works!

• Yes, you can add 1/2 + 1/3 and get 2/5. No, it won't give you the answer to what is 1/2 + 1/3, but it will give you the answer to a different problem.

• Stop reducing fractions! And don't buy products that tell your students to do it either!

• A Piagetian analysis of why fractions are confusing.

These recommendations are being made to solidify your teaching of fractions; if will help you understanding what you are teaching when you are teaching fractions, and give you information and examples about how you can explain all that is complex and confusing.

• You should also check out this, which is an extended analysis on how to teach division of fractions:Dividing Fractions: You're Teaching It Wrong!

• This is also pretty good: it uses pattern blocks to teach "flexible" approaches to fractions - Pattern Block Flexible Unit Fraction Cooperative Activity

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