Fractions are a part of everyday life, from cooking to budgeting, and they are important in many careers such as those in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) fields. While these skills are built throughout students’ schooling, middle school is a key time for students to form a strong foundation in fractions. The math instruction students receive during this time helps set them up for future success and narrows gaps in math achievement.
The free and publicly-available Teaching Fractions Toolkit, developed by REL Midwest, provides grade 6 math teachers with evidence-based strategies and actionable insights that they can integrate into their instruction to strengthen students’ understanding of fractions. It was developed to support teachers’ implementation of the practices from the What Works Clearinghouse Developing Effective Fractions Instruction for Kindergarten Through 8th Grade practice guide. The Toolkit’s primary areas of focus are:
- Understanding fraction computation and ratio, rate, and proportion problem solving.
- Understanding why computation procedures with fractions work.
- Understanding and using visual representations to support fraction computation and ratio, rate, and proportion problem solving.
- Understanding and overcoming common mistakes and misunderstandings and potential roadblocks to solving problems involving fractions.
The Toolkit also has resources for school administrators and leaders who support math teachers in their professional development. Watch the video below for more information about the Toolkit’s purpose, development, and content.
Toolkit strategies that engage students in fractions learning
An essential idea the Toolkit emphasizes is the use of visual representations, such as MultiLink blocks or double number lines, which help students build their conceptual understanding and engage in fraction computation. Visual representations also help students check if their solutions are reasonable and highlight possible misunderstandings and roadblocks that students may encounter. The video below provides more insights into this approach.
Once students become familiar with visually representing fraction problems, they begin to understand how the relationships between a collection of numbers can be used to solve a problem instead of relying on procedures to solve a problem. Multiple types of visual representations can be used together to deepen students’ understanding of fractions, a strategy that the video below explores further.
"The biggest change in students over the last few years has been them explaining why the answer is the answer... and they can defend that answer based upon the work that they have done, versus in the past I felt like a lot of students would just guess as to what they're doing, and not really understand if the answer made any sense. Now, they can make sense of their answers." - Middle grades teacher
The Toolkit empowers educators and school administrators to support effective fractions teaching
The Toolkit aims to deepen teachers’ understanding of fractions and computational procedures that involve fractions. It contains six modules that each consist of two facilitated meetings and self-paced interim activities. Each module has an accompanying workbook with instructions and handouts, and interactive apps, a reflection tool, and other useful resources to support teachers.
School leaders play an important role in shaping instruction as they reinforce the broader trajectory of fraction understanding across their schools. The Toolkit also includes videos, handouts, and other materials designed for administrators and math leaders. This blog post dives into how school leaders can use the Toolkit to support teachers’ professional learning.
By embracing evidence-based strategies and leveraging the Teaching Fractions Toolkit, educators and leaders can help students move to a deep understanding of fractions. Access the Toolkit and its components on the Teaching Fractions Toolkit site.
For more information on the Teaching Fractions Toolkit and our work in the region, browse the following REL Midwest resources:
- Handout: Teaching Fractions Toolkit Overview
- Webinar: Using the Teaching Fractions Toolkit to Support Evidence-Based Instruction in 6th Grade
- Blog Post: The Teaching Fractions Toolkit: Equipping educators to develop effective grade 6 instruction in fractions
- Blog Post: Five recommendations for teaching fractions at the start of middle school
- Blog Post: Strategies to engage students and transform the middle school math experience
- Blog Post: Using virtual manipulatives as a tool to support students in learning fractions
