Level 7, Lesson 2
Sample Teacher Lesson Plan and Student Resource Sheets
DIRECTED MATH ACTIVITY – Level 5, Lesson 20 Lesson Objective Reduce fractions to lowest terms Word Problem Objective Find average to solve a word problem.
Materials/Manipulatives Deck of cards (remove the face cards), fraction bars, dry-erase boards/markers/erasers, pencils, loose-leaf paper
Welcome (3 min.)
Brief Review and Practice (10 min.) Skill: Identify a common factor and Greatest Common Factor (GCF) of two numbers Teacher: Write two numbers on the board, such as 6 and 8. Lay out Ace through 10 face-up on the table. Direct the students to find a pencil and paper. Say: “I will lay out some playing cards. Look at the numbers 6 and 8 that I have written on the board. On your paper, please write down all of the factors of these two numbers. If you see common factors for 6 and 8 on the table, point to them. Teacher: After students locate common factor cards, ask which card is the greatest common factor. Repeat this procedure with some of the other examples in the chart below.
Pairs of numbers Common factors Greatest Common Factor (GCF)
6, 8 1, 2 2
3,12 1, 3 3
10, 15 1, 5 5
6, 15 1, 3 3
2, 8 1, 2 2
Word Problem Teacher: Write the following word problem on the board and work it out with the group. Mitchell, Mindy, Monica, and Muriel all have money in their pockets. Mitchell has $1.25, while Mindy has $1.10. Monica has $2.25 and Muriel has $3.40. What is the average amount of money they have in their pockets? 1.25 1.10 2.25 +3.40 $8.00
2.00 4) 8.00 - 8.00
They have an average of $2.00 in their pockets.
Corresponding Vocabulary Teacher: Write the following vocabulary words on a board. Discuss these words and their meanings throughout the lesson. Numerator, denominator, lowest terms, simplest fraction Concept Development (10 min.) Say: “Today our lesson will be on reducing fractions to their simplest form. If a fraction has a numerator and denominator with no common factor greater than 1, then the fraction is in its simplest form. Teacher: Have a set of fraction bars ready. Lay the following bars on the table for students to see. A dry-erase board will also be needed. 4/8
Say: “Look at the total number of parts of each bar. Then look at the number of shaded parts. Name the fraction for each bar.”
2/4 1/2
Teacher: As students respond, write the fraction that is named on the board. Say: “What do you notice when you compare the bars?” (The shaded parts are equal.) “Which bar has the least amount of parts shaded? (1/2, only one part is shaded) “Now look at the fractions that name each bar. Which fraction has the smallest denominator?” (1/2, 2 is less than 4 and 8) “One-half represents a fraction in lowest terms because the shaded amount is the same but one-half has the least number of parts.” Guided Practice (15 min.) Teacher: Have the following sets of fraction bars and student dry-erase boards ready for student use. 4/12, 2/6, 1/3 (1/3)
6/12, 5/10, 1/2 (1/2)
8/12, 4/6, 2/3 (2/3)
4/16, 2/8, 1/4 (1/4)
6/18, 3/9, 1/3 (1/3)
Say: “You will work with a partner and choose the fraction that is in lowest terms, from a set of three fractions. Write the reduced fraction on your board. How will you determine which fraction is in the lowest terms?” (Look at the bars with the same amount of shading. The fraction bar with the least parts shaded is in lowest terms.)
Teacher: When each pair has determined the fraction in lowest terms, ask them to share and explain their findings to the group. Say: “What did you notice about the denominator in the simplest fraction?” (It has the smallest denominator.) Independent Practice/Application (7 min.) Teacher: Have fraction bars available. Remove whole fraction bars (6/6, 12/12, 3/3, etc.) and zero bars (0/2, 0/4, 0/5, etc.). Give each student one bar and spread the remaining bars on the table face up. Record their findings on the board. Set up two columns as shown below. Say: “I will give each of you a fraction bar. You are to look at the remaining bars on the table to see if you can find another fraction bar with the same amount of shading, but fewer parts. If you find a bar with the same amount of shading, but fewer parts, what will that tell you?” (The fraction bar you gave us is not in lowest terms.) Say: “If your fraction is in lowest terms, write it in the ‘lowest terms’ column on this chart. If it is not, write the fraction in the ‘not in lowest terms’ column on the chart.” Fractions in lowest terms 1/2 1/5 3/4 2/3
Fractions not in lowest terms 2/8 4/6 3/12 3/6
Closure (15 min.) Lesson Summary – (1 minute) What did we do today? What is one thing you learned today? Administer Daily Lesson Assessment – (8 minutes) Check all work. Score and record results on the Math Group Skill Tracking Sheets.
126
8 10
AM5 Lesson 20
What is the fraction in lowest terms?
6 8
3)
4 6
List all of the fraction bars you found that have the same amount shaded.
8 12
Circle the fraction bar you were given:
2)
1)
SKILL: Reduce fractions to lowest terms
NAME ____________________________
Daily Lesson Assessment
6 9
2 4
DATE ______________
Lesson 20