Keep It Simple: Bulletin Boards part 2 and a freebie!

In an effort to Keep It Simple, I decided to change my main bulletin board only three times this year. You can see my first two bulletin boards here.

Now that spring has arrived I needed to take down my fraction snowmen.

I can't say that I am sad to see them go. I am looking forward to warmer weather and lots of sunshine.

Last year we had 11 snow days! (That is not a typo) and when spring approached I was just starting my fraction unit. So I used these fraction flowers to have the students demonstrate their understanding of adding and subtracting fractions.

On each of the five petals the students had to give two equivalent fractions, draw a picture of their fraction, create an additions problem and a subtraction problem that equaled their fraction. If you are interested in a free copy of this activity, you can get it here.

This year I finished my fraction unit just as spring arrived. Knowing that my previous flower activity would not be a challenge for my students, I gave it an update.

This time the students need to create an equivalent fraction, an addition problem, a subtraction problem, a multiplication problem and a division problem. We pretty much reviewed our entire unit on this one flower!

I love the division problem that this student created. It difficult to see since they colored the section in grey but it says 5 ÷ 10. I love that they remembered that a whole number divided by a larger whole number can be converted to a fraction to solved it. Most students divided a fraction by a fraction to create their problem. 

I used these flowers as a center activity just before our test on dividing fractions. Even though my students are in 5th grade they still love to color. They also love having their work displayed. 

This was a great way to check for student understanding. A few students needed to go back and make corrections but overall they did really well. 

Would you like a copy of my updated fraction flower? Click the image below.

How do you keep it simple in the classroom? I would love to hear your time saving tips in the comment section below.

New Product and a Giveaway!

I make so many games and activities for the students in my classroom but I always struggle with getting them TpT ready. Well, I finally finished my KABOOM! Dividing Fractions Game.

My students cannot get enough of KABOOM!. They seriously ask to play it every time we do centers. It has definitely motivated me to get moving and make some more games.

My favorite way to display the games is with these wonderful containers. You can wrap them in colorful duct tape like I did or just use them as is.

The KABOOM! slips fit perfectly inside.

It makes it easy for the students to reach in and grab their next slip.

You can also store your slips in these containers.

I have so many KABOOM! games that I prefer to store them flat in a storage container. I put the slips in a zipper bag and paper clip the answer key to it. Then I lie it flat in the storage bin. That way I don't have tons of cans everywhere. I have a few empty ones on a shelf that I fill with the choosen KABOOM! game of the day.

Would you like to win my KABOOM! Dividing Fractions Game?  Enter below. Good Luck!

a Rafflecopter giveaway

Product for Pay Day!

It's once again time for Focus on Fifth's Products for Pay Day Linky!

This is my best selling product on TpT and surprisingly it was one of my first that I posted. I have since given it a much needed make-over. So if you already own it, you can download the updated version of free.

This product has come a long way. Long before I ever heard of Teachers Pay Teachers I had several sets of index cards with improper fractions and mixed numbers hand-written on them. Even then it was a favorite game of my 5th graders. Once I discovered TpT and the wonders of PowerPoint I knew I needed to give this game a make-over.

This is what it first looked like.....

 
And my new updated version.......

 

Boy did it need a make over.

 Now that my children are old enough to play, it's a great way for them to review converting mixed numbers and improper fractions.

 Just like regular Go Fish, the goal of this game is to make the most pairs. The catch is that each improper fraction matches the equivalent mixed number.

You can also use it to play memory. Flip all the cards over and take turns trying to find a match. To make it easier, you can divide the game board into two sections. Put the mixed numbers on one side and the improper fractions on the other. Students would then pick one card from each section. This will make it easier to get a match.

 Does this sound like a game your students would like? It is currently on sale at my TpT store for 50% off until Friday.

What type of games do you use to teach fractions? I would love for you to tell about it in the comments below.

Don't forget to head over to Focused on Fifth and see the other Pay Day Products that are being promoted.

Tried It Tuesday - Adding Fractions

As we are making our way through our fraction unit I have been trying to come up with some different ways for the students to practice. So I am linking up with Holly from Fourth Grade Flipper for her Tried It Tuesday.

The other day I decided to have the students work in partners. This is what I came up with.

I gave each student an index card with a fraction on it.

I then passed out this sheet.

The border on this worksheet is from Creative Clips  and the font is from Teaches Third in Georgia

The students were then instructed to get up and find a partner. The only condition was that their partner could not have the same denominator as they did. (Since we were working on adding with unlike denominators).

When the student were done,  I used my document camera to project their work and the students shared their thinking with the rest of the class. 

I love how these two showed their work. You can see the list of multiples to assist them in finding the least common denominator.

I have been stressing how the students should show and label their work. I love how these two made it a point to label the LCM. Makes me feel good that they are listening!

These two went above and beyond to show two ways to find the solution. They were the only group to draw fraction tiles to illustrate their solution.

This example also gives me a opportunity to point out a common mistake that students make. Here is their mistake...
3/5 x 2/2 = 6/10 + 3/10 = 9/10 
      6/10    ≠    9/10       =     9/10

3/5 x 2/2 = 6/10 not 6/10 + 3/10. Students make this mistake all the time. The students still arrived at the correct answer and some of you might not consider this a huge issue but it can cause a lot of problems when the students take Algebra. Breaking them of this habit now will cause less problems later. 

I was hoping that we would have enough time for the students to find a second partner. I was interested to see if their work would change after seeing other examples. Unfortunately it took longer than expected and each math class ended with only completing one pairing.

How do you mix it up in your classroom?

Kim