Get ready to have some serious fraction fun! Students will use play dough to practice fractions of shapes in this hands-on math activity. Grab your favorite play dough set and read on to find out more.
The only materials you will need for this activity are play dough and a plastic knife. You may also want to provide a tray or baking sheet for children to use as a work surface. Let's get started!
Students will form play dough circles by hand and place them neatly on their work surface. We suggest making six to eight circles, about four inches in diameter. (It is not necessary to measure the circles, but just be sure they are large enough to divide into fractional parts.) If the circles are very spherical, flatten them out with the bottom of a drinking glass. Help little ones as needed.
Once students have made their circles, they can use the plastic knife to divide each of the circles into fractional parts: whole; halves; thirds; fourths; fifths; sixths; and so on.
You may choose to instruct your students to label each fraction using a sticky note placed near the corresponding circle.
Students can also form other basic shapes by hand and practice dividing them into equal parts.
Here are some ideas:
Make two trapezoids and show a whole and halves.
Make three triangles and show a whole, halves, and thirds.
Make four squares and show a whole, halves, thirds, and fourths.
Make five rectangles and show a whole, halves, thirds, fourths, and fifths.
What other shapes can your students make and divide into equal parts? Get creative!
After doing this activity, your students will become more familiar with fractions of shapes and dividing a whole into equal fractional parts.
Interested in practicing fractions of shapes further with your class? Check out the math practice activities featuring fractions of shapes on iKnowIt.com!
Did you try out this math activity with your students? Remember to tag @iKnowIt on social media so we can see your play dough creations! If you have feedback or tips for this activity, drop us a line in the comment section below.
