Fractions of a Whole

• Display the orange or lemon to your class, and tell them that you want to give half of the fruit to a person in the class.
• Use your knife to cut the citrus in half. Give one of the halves to a student volunteer.
• Write the fraction 1/2 on the whiteboard.
• Explain to students that the denominator, or number on the bottom, tells how many equal parts the item is divided into. Tell your class that the numerator, or number on the top, tells how many of those parts are being referred to.
• Show the students your chocolate bar, and tell them that you're going to divide that chocolate bar into three equal pieces.
• Divide your chocolate bar into thirds.
• Give one third to a student volunteer.
• Tell your class that you just gave away one third of your chocolate bar.
• Write 1/3 on the chalkboard.
• Explain once more to students that the denominator tells how many equal parts the item is divided into, and the numerator tells how many parts are being referred to.

Students Practice on the Following Site

Math Games