teacher

The Game

Play the Fraction Track game using the interactive board on the NCTM Illuminations site. The first player starts by moving one or more of his/her markers along the tracks, either forward or backward, so that the positive and negative distances moved by all markers add to the amount shown in the fraction box. When a piece is moved, an outline is shown in its starting position for that turn. Clicking on Finish Move will either let the next player take a turn if the markers correctly add to the fraction shown on the box or display an error message if the move was not correct. When a correct move has been entered, the second player then similarly moves one or more red markers. If a player cannot complete a move, a turn can be passed by clicking on the Pass button. The first player to move all his or her markers to the right side of the Fraction Track board wins! (More - click below.)

Source: NCTM Principles & Standards: Communicating about Mathematics Using Games: Playing Fraction Tracks*

*The interactive game plug-in does not work. Use the link for the updated one here.

Setting the Stage

Watch this video of a teacher playing the Fraction Track game using post-its attached to her whiteboard. This is an excellent way to prepare students for the electronic version of the game. The students in the video play the game on a paper playing field using chips. This is an option for the teacher to choose before they play on the computer. (Click on the image to open the video.)