Young Children's Growing Understanding of Fraction Ideas.

This chapter presents a yearlong teaching experiment involving a 4th grade class in a New Jersey school that focused on fractions. The 25 children worked in pairs or in small groups, then came together as a whole class for sharing in larger discussions. The development of children's thinking is explored through analyzing videotapes of class sessions, studying the children's written work and researcher's field notes, and listening to students' conversations as they discussed their ideas with one another. Results indicate that students built important understanding of fractions by modeling, drawing pictures, and eventually developing the notation for their ideas. (KHR)