Lesson Plan: Dividing Whole Numbers by Unit Fractions
This lesson plan includes the objectives, prerequisites, and exclusions of the lesson teaching students how to divide whole numbers by unit fractions using models, such as tape diagrams and number lines.
Objectives
Students will be able to
- count the number of unit fractions shown in a whole number represented by models (including tape diagrams and number lines),
- divide a whole number by a fraction using models to help,
- recognize that dividing by a unit fraction is the same as multiplying by the denominator of that fraction,
- apply knowledge of multiplication to divide a whole number by a fraction using multiplication.
Prerequisites
Students should already be familiar with
- unit fractions,
- fractions equivalent to 1 whole (for example, knowing that 3 thirds, 5 fifths, and so on are equal to 1 whole) and, subsequently, fractions equal to other whole numbers,
- using tape diagrams and number lines to represent fractions greater than 1,
- multiplication facts to .
Exclusions
Students will not cover
- dividing whole numbers by nonunit fractions.
