CLASSROOM

NEWSLETTER

2nd Week of October | 2023 3rd Grade

From Miss Olivia,

Hello parents and guardians!

This week we will be beginning to work

with fractions in class. While fractions
are an extremely important
App Features:
component of the mathematics
curriculum, many students often have
difficulty understanding and using Choose a bar or circle to represent
fractions. For this reason, I would like to the whole
share with you a mathematics
Divide each whole into 1-100 equal
program called the Fractions App that I
believe can be a tool to support the parts
teaching and learning of fractions. We Fill in parts of the whole with color to
will be using this program in school
show a fraction
and students will be able to access it
at home, so it would be helpful for you Rotate fractions or drag to resize
and your child to familiarize yourself the whole
with it.
Hide and show numeric labels
If there are any questions regarding Superimpose fractions to compare
the Fractions App please contact me. them
Thank you!
Share your work by saving the
image or sending a link to others
The Fractions App
The Fractions App is a free app created
by the Math Learning Center. It is Contact Me!
available as both a web-based app for
internet browsers and as a
downloadable app for tablet devices. Miss Olivia Carney
The Fractions App is an open-ended carneyo@bc.edu
tool that allows students to represent
fractions with circle and bar models. (860)941-2172
With these models, students can
compare and perform operations with
fractions with denominators from 1 to
100.
 The Fractions App is a great way for
students to create pictorial models of
fractions. Models are helpful tools for
3rd grade students first learning to work
with fractions. Virtual models are just as
effective as physical manipulatives, and
many students find them more
engaging and appealing. Pictorial
virtual models can also serve as a
bridge between concrete and symbolic
Representing fractions with the Fractions App
representations for students.

There are three types of fraction models: area models in

which the whole is portioned into equal parts, length
models in which lengths are compared to a unit length, and
Area Models
set models in which the whole is a set of the object and the
parts of the set are fractional parts. I will have students
create all of these models with the Fractions App. Gaining
familiarity with all three models is important for children to
develop a thorough understanding of the meaning of
Length Models fractions while also helping them to develop flexibility with
strategies.

Set Models
Iterating on the Fractions App

With the app, I can provide students with opportunities to

practice finding equal shares (partitioning), repeatedly
copying a part of a whole (iterating), comparing fractions,
finding equivalent fractions, and performing fraction
operations. I will also use the app to reinforce appropriate
fraction language and symbolism. Developing these skills are
essential for students to conceptually understand fractions. Comparing fractions on
the Fractions App

The Fractions App provides a digital workspace in which students can solve problems and
explain their thinking. I plan to use the app to let students explore and develop their
understanding of fractions as well as send them activities to complete. The visual
representations will not only help students to find the correct answers to problems, but will
allow me to see how they approach the problem and gain insight into what fraction
concepts each student does and does not understand. Through the sharing feature,
activities can be interactive, allowing me to provide students with feedback and have
students collaborate with peers. However, because the tool is open-ended, it does not
automatically correct students’ responses. For this reason, it is important that guardians and
teachers interact with students as they use this technology tool.