On October 20, 2011, teachers who are piloting Fraction Contraption (www.fractioncontraption.com) through the Sierra College STEM Collaborative and National Science Foundation grants met to debrief on their experience, discuss teaching methods and learn a new game also developed by Jono Schwartz, Fence the Yard.

What teachers say is going well with testing Fraction Contraption in their classrooms:

• The students love it
• The students like the competition

Teaching tips:

• Use ruler and write down conversions
• Write down rolls – show total, then challenge teacher to “graduate” to not writing it down
• Use number line – student have it out while playing
• Had them pair up with peers who understand it to help the ones having trouble
• Teacher helps pick who to play for 1st game, then can challenge anyone
• Class plays against the teacher

Incentives:

• Uses play money and treats it like a gambling game – 5th grade – they love it
• Uses prizes from the dollar tree – vw bugs, erasers, cones on desk when doing well, big erasers, gold trophies that you can write their name on and post – juniors and seniors in HS still like these gestures

Track rank in tournaments:

• Keep track with yard stick – mounted away from the wall and place the cloths pins with the students name on them – change position as rank changes
• Uses magnets on file cabinet for tracking tournament place
• Smart board – position – drags name –for tournament play
• Made ladder with Velcro to move ranking