What’s the best way to boost your students’ emerging understanding of fractional amounts? Give them their own set of tangible manipulatives to arrange side-by-side on top of a reusable comparison mat so they can see and judge the amounts for themselves. This 19-page resource includes the comparison mat and all the common fractions as sections of a circle in color and black and white, as well as a bonus two pages containing one or two of each fraction circle for those times you do not need to print in volume. Use the black and white pages to print at school on whatever colored card stock is available in the teacher workroom, or print in full color on white card stock instead if you have access to a color printer. Then assign a parent volunteer to cut the pieces apart and laminate for durability, ensuring you can use these year after year to help your third and fourth grade students understand the difference between varying fractional amounts.

After the comparison mat is laminated, students can use a dry erase or wet erase marker to write in and wipe off fractions and use it to compare again and again. This set will lead to rich discussions about why a larger number in the denominator of a unit fraction does not mean the fraction represents a larger amount, as well as the discovery that some fractions can be combined to make up other fractions and others cannot. Gives students a hands-on way to explore and discover how to compare fractional amounts and decompose a fraction into a group of unit fractions. Designed to address Common Core State Standards CCSS 3.NF.A.1, CCSS 3.NF.A.3.a, CCSS.3.NF.A.3.b, CCSS 3.NF.A.3.c, CCSS 3.NF.A.d, CCSS 4.NF.A.1, and CCSS 4.NF.A.2, but can be used to remediate or reinforce understanding in other settings or situations, such as in special education classrooms. This and all my products come with an error-free money-back guarantee.

Enjoy, and please leave feedback to let other educators know how they worked in your classroom. Thank you for choosing this product!

Like this resource? Get notified anytime I create something new by Following my store. Click here!