Fractions with Fruit: Whole, Halves and Quarters

Practice fraction concepts of whole, halves and quarters with these fruity fractions. They’re not exact, so they’re perfect for guesstimating and for introducing the idea of fractions. And you can pull out real fruit to consolidate the learning!

Getting ready

• Download this fractions printable at the bottom of this post.
• Print off the colour or black and white pages you wish to use.
• Cut around the fruit and separate on the white lines.
• Laminate the mat and pieces to help them last.

Learning about fractions

It’s a good idea to introduce fractions gradually and informally while children are kindergarten aged and younger. Most children would have heard words like ‘half,’ since they can be used in many contexts, so it’s as much a vocabulary building exercise as a mathematical one.

Using these fruit fractions

Talk about the vocabulary of whole, halves and quarters as children look at the fraction pieces and place them on top of the ‘whole’ fruit mat. It’s not important to focus on the symbols 1/2 and 1/4 unless your children are a little older and are ready.

These pieces are similar to common puzzles so most children should be used to manipulating pieces around to see where they fit.

If you have other exact examples of halves and quarters, you can show those to your child and talk about how the fruit pieces are approximately halves and quarters. It’s OK (at this stage) to call something ‘half’ or ‘nearly half’ as long as it looks pretty close.

Download here!

Click on the following highlighted link to download your FRUIT FRACTIONS ACTIVITY. As soon as you click, it will be sent to your downloads folder or other device equivalent.

Want to encourage healthy eating?

• Healthy eating and body image: this research post has lots of useful information and includes a free printable book titled ‘I’m SO healthy!’
• Cooking with Kids: A sure-fire video course for you to check out. I highly recommend this course! It’s excellent, especially in teaching safety while getting kids actively involved in cooking, even very young children.

I hope your kids enjoy these fruit fractions!