A comprehensive Grade 4–5 introductory lesson on adding fractions with like denominators, featuring rich visual models, multilingual ELL scaffolds, sentence frames, and structured cooperative learning.
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Sofia 4
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They ate 5 slices out of 8 total slices.
Sentence Frame: "Together they ate 5 out of 8 equal slices."
Math Detective: Trap Alert!
¡Cuidado con la Trampa!
Look at Carlos's work:
\(\frac{2}{7} + \frac{3}{7} = \frac{5}{14}\)
Is Carlos correct or incorrect? Thumbs Up or Thumbs Down?
What went wrong?
Carlos added denominators: \(7 + 7 = 14\). Fourteenths are tiny pieces! The pieces did not shrink!
The Correct Fix!
Keep the denominator as 7.
\(\frac{2}{7} + \frac{3}{7} = \frac{5}{7}\)
Never add denominators when combining parts of the same whole!
Partner Talk: Speak Like a Mathematician
Habla con tu Compañero
Structured Sentence Frames
“I am adding ___ and ___.”
“The denominator is ___, so the size of each piece stays the same.”
“When I add the numerators, the total sum is ___.”
En Español: “El denominador es el mismo, así que solo sumo los numeradores.”
Turn to your elbow partner and share your thinking!
Your Mission: Practice & Conquer
¡A Trabajar!
1
Look & Color
Shade the fraction bars to represent both addends.
2
Add & Keep
Add the numerators together and keep the denominator.
3
Explain
Use your sentence frames to tell why your sum makes sense.
You are a Fraction Master! • ¡Eres un Maestro de Fracciones!
Vocabulary: mile = milla
Step 1: Shade Mateo's miles below (10 equal parts):
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Step 2: Write Equation
Step 3: Complete the Sentence
Mateo ran _______ of a mile altogether.
Part 4: Math Detective (Find and Fix the Mistake!)
¡Detective de Errores!
Diego wrote this addition on his test: \(\frac{2}{7} + \frac{3}{7} = \frac{5}{14}\)
1. Is Diego correct? Yes No Correct Sum:
2. Explain why Diego's answer is wrong. Use the word denominator:
Self-Check & Reflection
How confident do you feel adding fractions with like denominators?
😁 Got it! 🤔 Need practice 🙋 Need help
Fraction Fusion • Student Practice Sheet Page 2 of 2
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Equation:
\(\frac{3}{10} + \frac{4}{10} = \frac{7}{10}\) of a mile
Complete Sentence:
Mateo ran \(\frac{7}{10}\) of a mile altogether.
Part 4: Detective Fix Solution
Exemplar Explanation
1. Is Diego correct? [ ] Yes [X] No (Incorrect) Correct Sum: \(\frac{5}{7}\)
Exemplar Student Response: “Diego is wrong because he added the bottom numbers (7 + 7 = 14). When adding fractions, we keep the denominator the same because the size of each piece did not change. The correct answer is \(\frac{5}{7}\).”
ELL Formative Diagnostic Checklist
Visual Modeling (30%)
Shaded parts accurately represent both addends without skipping parts.
Conceptual Rule (40%)
Numerators added correctly; denominator strictly remains the same across all items.
Language Expression (30%)
Accurately uses target terms (numerator, denominator) in sentence frames.
