Fraction Card Games

Subjects

Mathematics
--Arithmetic
--Measurement

Grade

3-5
6-8
9-12

Brief Description

Four different card games provide fraction practice and reinforcement.

Objectives

Students will

follow the rules of the game.
recognize and reduce fractions correctly.
compare fractions to determine the largest/smallest.

Keywords

fraction, card game, games, proper fraction, reduce fractions

Materials Needed

Each game requires a deck of cards.

One game comes with a printable fraction card page.
One game makes use of regular decks of playing cards with all face cards removed.
Two games will require that special decks of fraction cards be produced. Instructions included.

Lesson Plan

These four card games provide fraction practice and reinforcement.

Fraction War.
Create decks of 52 fraction cards -- a different fraction on every card. Arrange students into groups of four. Deal the cards, face down, one card at a time until all students have a pile of 13 fraction cards. Students turn over the top cards in their piles in unison. The student with the largest fraction wins the four cards in play. If a student runs out of cards, s/he is out of the game. The player with the most cards at the end of the game is the winner. Alternate game: The student with the smallest fraction wins the cards in play.

Fraction Concentration.
If you teach elementary grade students, print this page, which has on it 24 fraction cards (12 pairs of equivalent fraction cards). Have students cut the cards along the ruled lines to create 24 cards. Turn the cards face down in a grid of 6 cards x 4 cards. Each player takes turns turning over two cards. If the two cards turned are equivalent fractions, the player who turned them over keeps them. If the two cards are not equivalent, players try to remember where they saw the cards. When all cards have been matched, the player with the most cards is declared the winner. If you teach older students, you might create your own decks of cards with more complex fractions. Note that there are examples of four equivalent fraction cards on the printable page provided:

Example:
1/3 2/6 1/3 3/9

In this case, students might match the 1/3 card with a 2/6 card, a 3/9 card, or the other 1/3 card. If a student matches the two 1/3 cards, then the 2/6 and 3/9 cards will form the other match.

Slap Fraction.
This game is for two players. Write a wide variety of fractions on at least 50 index cards. Shuffle the cards and turn the deck upside down. Students take turns flipping over the top card on the deck. If the card turned over can be reduced (for example, a card that says 4/12 can be reduced to 1/3), the first player to slap the card and tell what it can be reduced to takes the card. If the card turned over cannot be reduced, the first player to slap the card and say it cant be reduced" takes the card. When all the cards are gone, the player with the most cards wins the game.

Largest Fraction.
For this game, students can use a regular deck of playing cards with all the face cards and joker cards removed. Ace cards = a value of 1." Shuffle the cards. Deal four cards to each player. Players use the cards they were dealt to make the largest possible fractions.

Example:
Player 1 holds the cards 2, 3, 6, and 8
Player 2 holds the cards 1, 3, 3, and 7*
Player 3 holds the cards 2, 5, 6, and 8
Player 4 holds the cards 1, 2, 7, and 10
Each player makes the largest proper fraction s/he can make:
Player 1: 6/8
Player 2: 3/7*
Player 3: 5/6
Player 4: 7/10
In this example hand, the winner is Player 3 because 5/6 is a larger fraction than all the others.
*Note: Player 2 could make the fraction 3/3, but that is not a proper fraction. A proper fraction always has a smaller number in the numerator than it has in the denominator.

Award Player 3 a point, place all cards from that round at the bottom of the pile, and play another round. The player with the most points at the end of the game is the winner.

Assessment

Assess students based on their knowledge and use of fractions. Do they recognize equivalent, larger, and reduced fractions?

Lesson Plan Source

EducationWorld.com

Submitted By

Gary Hopkins

National Standards

MATHEMATICS: Number and Operations
GRADES Pre-K - 2
GRADES 3 - 5
NM-NUM.3-5.1 Understand Numbers, Ways of Representing Numbers, Relationships Among Numbers, and Number Systems
NM-NUM.3-5.3 Compute Fluently and Make Reasonable Estimates
GRADES 6 - 8
NM-NUM.6-8.1 Understand Numbers, Ways of Representing Numbers, Relationships Among Numbers, and Number Systems
NM-NUM.6-8.3 Compute Fluently and Make Reasonable Estimates
GRADES 9 - 12
NM-NUM.9-12.1 Understand Numbers, Ways of Representing Numbers, Relationships Among Numbers, and Number Systems
NM-NUM.9-12.3 Compute Fluently and Make Reasonable Estimates

MATHEMATICS: Measurement
GRADES 3 - 5
NM-MEA.3-5.2 Apply Appropriate Techniques, Tools, and Formulas to Determine Measurements
GRADES 6 - 8
NM-MEA.6-8.2 Apply Appropriate Techniques, Tools, and Formulas to Determine Measurements
GRADES 9 - 12
NM-MEA.9-12.2 Apply Appropriate Techniques, Tools, and Formulas to Determine Measurements

MATHEMATICS: Communications
GRADES Pre-K - 12
NM-COMM.PK-12.1 Organize and Consolidate Their Mathematical Thinking Through Communication
NM-COMM.PK-12.2 Communicate Their Mathematical Thinking Coherently and Clearly to Peers, Teachers, and Others
NM-COMM.PK-12.3 Analyze and Evaluate the Mathematical Thinking and Strategies of Others
NM-COMM.PK-12.4 Use the Language of Mathematics to Express Mathematical Ideas Precisely