My students need Cuisenaire Rods (manipulatives) to understand fractions, decimals, and percentages.
FULLY FUNDED! Mrs. Kolb's classroom raised $444
This project is fully funded
My Students
Four out of three people struggle with fractions. This has become a funny joke in social media, but the sad truth is that many people can relate to the irony. Our students need help to learn all the procedures and methods for learning about fractions, decimals, and percentages.
John Swett Elementary is blazing a trail, as represented by our school motto, "Team Kid"Â.
Our fifth graders are setting the expectation bar high, and they will be successful! These 85 fifth graders work hard and play hard. In a recent survey, a majority of the students reported their learning style as "Body/Kinesthetic"Â, meaning that they learn best by physically doing things, not just hearing a lecture or doing paper and pencil work. For them, learning happens by building, exploring, questioning, experimenting, and sharing their knowledge with each other.
My Project
We are requesting Cuisenaire Rods. In the past, students were mostly taught algorithms for solving math problems. However, when students begin working with fractions, decimals, and percentages, these algorithms become overwhelmingly complicated and confusing. Our brains are not programmed to learn these abstract concepts until we have deep conceptual understanding. Students need opportunities to move, build, try, and explore. Cuisenaire rods turn abstract concepts of math into tangible blocks; each a different color and size to represent parts of a whole. For example, an orange rod equals 10 centimeters and a red rod equals 2 centimeters. Children can line up the long (100%) orange rod with five corresponding red rods, to determine that red is one-fifth, or 20% of the total. This hands-on method of exploring and learning about fractions, decimals, and percentages help students visually and physically build models.
With your generous support, our students will have the manipulatives that will help them conceptualize the complex relationships between fractions, decimals, and percentages.
If you have ever struggled with these topics, you can sympathize with the frustration that many students have when they are only taught to work these problems with a pencil and paper. These hands-on materials will help students develop a solid foundation. Thank you!
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As a teacher-founded nonprofit, we're trusted by thousands of teachers and supporters across the country. This classroom request for funding was created by Mrs. Kolb and reviewed by the DonorsChoose team.