Is your primary 2 student frustrated by fractions? Well stop worrying – we’re here to help. This week, we’ve put together our list of the top 3 best activities for teaching fractions in Primary 2. These fun, simple activities are commonly used by private home tutors and at tuition centers in and around Singapore.
What are the best fraction activities for Primary 2 math private home tuition?
1. LEGO® fraction game
2. Spin and cover
3. Playdough faction circles
Why
use fraction activities for private home tuition in Singapore?
Math books and worksheets can make it quite difficult for kids to grasp an abstract
concept like fractions. Activities are great because they bring the math to
life using real objects that kids can touch and feel. Private home tutors and tuition
centers in Singapore are experts at using manipulatives such as blocks,
dominoes and other tactile things to help kids master fractions in no time.
The
best way to teach Primary 2 fractions in a private home tuition setting
If you’re a regular reader of our blog, you’ll know that we love IXL! This amazing free website
outlines exactly what your child needs to know to master fractions in Primary
2!
Before giving your child home tuition, you should quickly assess them to see where they are. If they are just starting out with the topics, you should focus on identifying fractions and recognizing shapes that represent them.
Once they are comfortable with that, you
can move on to tougher challenges such as ordering fractions:
You can find this activity here, to help you.
Of course, IXL is great, but at the end of the day, it’s just a computer screen. To help your child succeed you need to bring math to life with real things that they can see, and interact with.
The
best fractions activity for private math home tuition in Singapore
1. LEGO® fraction game
You probably have LOADS of LEGO® at home, so why not make use of it? LEGO®
rocks for teaching fractions as its bright, colorful and interesting. It
appeals to visual learners who learn by what they see as well as those who
learn by doing.
If you don’t have LEGO® don’t stress – any other type of building block will work well too!
As you can see, simply lining up a series of blocks can help kids understand basic fractions. One fun activity you can play is a simple game of ‘Match’.
Write down the fractions on individual pieces of paper (1 whole, ½, ¾, ¼, etc). Mix up a bunch of LEGO® blocks and ask your child to sort.
This helps teach concepts such as ¼ – you can have your kid physically press four ¼ blocks onto a large 1 whole block to show that four of them make up a whole.
The
best fractions activity for private math home tuition in Singapore
2. Spin and cover
Most kids love pizza, so this cool ‘spin and cover’
game should get them excited about fractions!
The folks over at Lifeovercs make a fantastic spin and cover game that you can print and use right now. Simply head to their site to print the game here.
To make this game, just print out the board on thick card, or print on paper and then laminate (if you have access to a laminator). A simple paper fastener in the top right is all you need to make a working spinner. Kids can flick this to randomly choose a fraction such as 1, ½, ¼ and so on.
To ‘cover’ the pizzas that show the correct fraction, any old blocks or counters will do. You could even use LEGO® blocks, it doesn’t matter!
To play the game, your kid simply has to spin and then cover the corresponding fractions. For example, if the spinner lands on ‘1 whole’, they would cover all the whole pizzas.
You can take turns with each of you being a different color. The person who covers the most pizzas is the winner.
But don’t let the learning stop there – if you ever go out for pizza or order a takeaway, you can take the opportunity to revise fractions there too. After you take a slice, ask your kid “What fraction of the pizza is left?” and revise how to calculate fractions in style!
The
best fractions activity for private math home tuition in Singapore
3. Playdough fraction circles
Is there anything better than opening a tub of new
Playdough and savoring that delectable aroma? It smells good enough to eat, but
of course, you can’t! However, play dough can be endless fun for young kids
(and adults!) so why not use it to teach fractions?
Playdough fraction circles are simply circles that you draw with the fractions you want to teach. In the example below, we drew a ½ circle and a 5/6 circle.
This visual way of teaching fractions is sure to be memorable, but don’t let the learning stop there! If you make each circle on a small square of paper or card, you can extend learning and start to compare fractions.
For example, make three fraction circles – 4/5, 1/5 and 3/5 – and then ask your kid to put them in order. This is an effective way of bringing online activities such as IXL to life and is sure to be far more engaging.
Try it and see!
Have
fun with the Top 3 fraction activities for private home tuition in Singapore!
We hope you enjoyed our fun fraction activities and
get a lot of use out of them. Hopefully, we dispelling the myth that fractions
have to be tough – they’re actually one of the more enjoyable math topics to
teach when you have the right approach!
If you want the latest tips and ideas for private home tuition in Singapore, why not subscribe to our blog?