Visual Fractions
Visual Fractions is not just another collection of activity screens developed to use on an interactive whiteboard, but a tool for the teacher to develop their repertoire of resources to support learning in their classroom.
There are three modes of working in Visual Fractions:
- Run mode which allows you to run (solve) the activities on the CD ROM.
- Explore mode which allows you to develop these and new activities.
- Sequence mode which allows you to make sequences from saved activities.
No, you do not need to be a ‘techy’ to be able to create your own screens. There are two guides included on the CD ROM; a Reference Guide and an Activity Guide, which offer an extensive and simple to follow set of instructions to help you get the most from this clever idea.
To get you started there are six areas to investigate:
- Box fraction Ideas (a selection of screens already to use)
- Live performance (a variety of activities ready to use)
- Number trails (mental addition by identifying a trail of numbers)
- Numberline screens (a selection of numberlines, perfect for Oral/Mental Starters)
- Region ideas (My favorite including ratio activities)
- Visual Fraction Ideas (examples of different activities)
My first reaction when exploring the software was ‘oh no, another on-screen worksheet’! However, even a worksheet can become an effective learning experience in the hands of a good practitioner. I suppose my words of caution might be to question the purpose (mathematically) of using some of the screens, but the judgement is with the user. For instance, many of the screens in the section titled ‘Visual Fraction Ideas’ look like another drill and practice exercise. They leave you wondering how the activity might develop learner’s conceptual understanding of the relationship and connections between fractions, decimals, percentages and ratio. The danger is that it becomes another procedural learning experience in the wrong hands.
I found a couple of the screens confusing. I was puzzled as some screens offer just questions with no where to type an answer, whereas others have an instant feedback on answers moved or typed into boxes. It took a while to realise that there is indeed a mix of type of question screens, some are closed and some are open. One particular area – Number trails – asks the operator to drag five numbers into an answer area to make 1 whole (or in other screens 2, 3 etc.) I am not sure if there is a glitch in the software or I have totally misunderstood the question, but the turtle (or is it a tortoise, never have known the difference, but I suppose this is Logotron so assume it is a turtle) nods its head when I have only dragged two numbers down to the answer area to complete the trail. Yet the question says five numbers are needed! Not sure about that one.
If these screens were left to a child to manipulate in isolation, like many software activities are in schools today, children could complete this and not really understand the question and get the answer correct, furthermore not understand the answer!
However, my summation is simple. I like this little piece of software. It gives me the flexibility to run the activities as they are, but, more usefully, to alter existing activities AND create new ones to suit my children in my lesson at the time I want it. I would recommend this software to mathematics departments in secondary schools (SEN support particularly) as well as primary teachers. As soon as you have worked out how to create your own activity you can start to build a collection of screens for particular learners and perhaps train your teaching assistant to create these screens for working with particular groupings.
Logotron have devised a screen for the teacher to be creative!
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