Equal sharing: beginning division
Share one at a time to form equal portions and identify leftovers.
Start with the objects ↓An idea to revisit first: Several equal groups: multiplication →
Think with objects in front of you
Give each person one in turn. Check that each has the same number and look separately at leftovers.
Share six marbles equally between two people. Give them one at a time in turn instead of giving everything to one person. Each ends with three.
Write 6÷2=3. Six is the total, two is the number of people, and three is each share. The sign ÷ means division. The total remains six.
With seven whole marbles and two people, each gets three and one remains. If marbles cannot be cut and none may remain, equal whole-marble shares are impossible. State the conditions.
A chocolate bar is different. If it can be cut into equal parts, two people can share half each. What counts as one object and whether it can be divided matter. This leads to fractions.
Listen one paragraph at a time
Now move the objects yourself
Choose the total and number of people. Compare their equal shares and the leftover objects. Explain why giving all leftovers to one person breaks equality.
Tap objects to mark what you have counted. There is no time limit.
Person 1
Person 2
Person 3
Objects left over
You may use small toys or blocks instead of the screen. Explain what stayed the same and what changed.
Check your idea with different examples
What differs between sharing seven marbles and sharing one chocolate bar between two people?
You may speak or draw on paper. Look for these ideas in your explanation.
Continue reading, or pause here
You can now continue to fractions: dividing one whole into equal parts.
Explore shapes and measurements too
Pour, measure ribbons and sort shapes. After matching and counting, there are paths to explore besides fractions.
First steps with shapes, measurement and data →