Fractions and Physical Education

I promise, this is the last topic on fractions then I will move on. However, this is also the simplest one to demonstrate just how embedded fractions are in our lives in America and how easy it is to teach fractions to children.

Before I dive into this, let me comment a tad about my first grade daughter. Part of the great power of homeschooling it tailoring lessons to meet the exact needs and learning style of the child. As such, we introduced fractions to her as part of her curriculum. It took a total of 30 minutes, 2 pieces of folded paper, 2 coins, a clock, and a bowl of water for her to grasp the relationship of 1, ½, 1/3, and ¼. I’ll explain it later.

How do fractions relate to physical education? Quite simply, just about every aspect of P.E. involves fractions and can easily be modified to give young children a solid basis in mathematics. For example, the majority of sports involve a combination of periods of play within one whole game. In baseball, there are 9 innings unless it is the Little League level where there are 6. The game is not complete until all the innings are played or the game is called on account of bad weather. So 3 out of 9 innings is not a complete game but represents only 1/3^rd of a game.

In many other P.E. games, a required number of players are needed for a team or the team is not complete. Two out of three team members is not enough. 2/3rds of a team can’t compete. The examples go on and on but the easiest method to introduce fractions is the sports just about all the kids know. Soccer, basketball and football are all well known. Fraction terms are used throughout all of them but are so obvious, they are overlooked many times.

Soccer is played in two 45 minute halves. Football and basketball are played in quarters. Football is well known for its half-time. All of these lead to lessons with a clock which helps to reinforce half-past, quarter after, quarter to methods of reading a clock. Not all clocks are digital.

These terms can then be brought back full circle with another basic elementary math subject being money. Half-dollars, quarters and the fractions of how many nickels, dimes or pennies in a dollar all play a role in demonstrating how embedded fractions are in our lives. It also brings math closer to home so you can see the numbers.

The next step is to bring it back to sports. How much money is that athlete’s 6 year contract worth? What fraction is (s)he being paid each year? It goes on and on.