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7th, 8th, 9th Grades  Project 2 weeks

Fraction Frenzy: Real World Math Adventures!

Megan B
CCSS.Math.Content.7.NS.A.3
CCSS.Math.Content.7.NS.A.2
CCSS.Math.Content.7.EE.B.3
Build cultural intelligence
Build networks
+ 1 more
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Purpose

Students will explore the practical applications of fractions and ratios by collaborating with local farmers and kitchen staff to design recipes for a school-wide bake sale. Through hands-on activities, they will compare and order fractions, understand their relationship with decimals, ratios, and percents, and perform operations with fractions to create balanced recipes. This project encourages students to build cultural intelligence and community networks while developing multilingual skills, culminating in a recipe exhibition for family and community members.

Learning goals

Students will develop a deep understanding of fractions, decimals, and ratios through real-world applications by collaborating with local farmers and kitchen staff to explore recipes. They will enhance their mathematical skills by comparing, ordering, and performing operations with fractions in practical scenarios, such as adjusting ingredients for a bake sale. By designing a balanced recipe, students will apply mathematical concepts and build cultural intelligence, network with community partners, and engage in multilingual communication. The project will culminate in a school-wide exhibition where students present their recipes, showcasing their ability to solve real-life problems using rational numbers.
Standards
  • [Common Core] CCSS.Math.Content.7.NS.A.3 - Solve real-world and mathematical problems involving the four operations with rational numbers.
  • [Common Core] CCSS.Math.Content.7.NS.A.2 - Apply and extend previous understandings of multiplication and division and of fractions to multiply and divide rational numbers.
  • [Common Core] CCSS.Math.Content.7.EE.B.3 - Solve multi-step real-life and mathematical problems posed with positive and negative rational numbers in any form (whole numbers, fractions, and decimals), using tools strategically. Apply properties of operations to calculate with numbers in any form; convert between forms as appropriate; and assess the reasonableness of answers using mental computation and estimation strategies.
Competencies
  • Sustain Well-Being - Build cultural intelligence (SW.3)
  • Build Community - Build networks (BC.3)
  • Build Community - Develop as a multilingual (BC.4)

Products

Students will collaborate with local farmers and TLK to create a variety of culturally diverse recipes that utilize seasonal produce, focusing on the application of fractions, ratios, and percentages to ensure balanced ingredient proportions. Throughout the project, students will document their process in a multilingual recipe booklet, highlighting the mathematical reasoning behind their ingredient choices. The final product will be a school-wide bake sale where students present their recipes and baked goods, demonstrating their understanding of fractions in a real-world context.

Launch

Kick off the project by inviting a local chef to demonstrate how they use fractions, ratios, and percentages in their daily work, particularly when scaling recipes for large events. Students will then participate in a hands-on activity where they work in small groups to adjust a simple recipe to serve different numbers of people. This activity will set the stage for understanding the importance of fractions in real-world scenarios and prepare them for designing their own balanced recipes for the school-wide bake sale.

Exhibition

Students will collaborate with community partners, such as local farmers and kitchen staff, to design and prepare a balanced recipe for a school-wide bake sale. Each team will present their recipe, highlighting the use of fractions and ratios to ensure nutritional balance and portion accuracy. The exhibition will culminate in a "Homenight" event where students showcase their culinary creations, engage in multilingual presentations, and discuss the cultural significance of their recipes with attendees.