Equal parts first
Children learn fractions as equal shares of one whole. Circles and bars show the same idea two ways, so the fraction is not tied to one shape.Provincial curriculum links
- ON Grade 1–2Fractions begin with sharing things equally.
- ON Grade 3Fractions can be shown in more than one way, such as one half as two fourths.
- BC Grade 3Fractions as equal shares of a whole, shown as part of a region, a set or a line, then written as symbols.
- BC Grade 4Comparing fractions with common denominators, and linking fractions to decimals.
Ontario starts fractions earlier than BC: Grade 1 students share a whole equally and talk about the parts, while BC introduces fraction concepts in Grade 3. Either way, the order is the same: concrete materials first, then pictures like these circles and bars, then the written fraction.
Many Canadian students already know the word quarter from the 25-cent coin, a handy link when you reach fourths: four quarters make a dollar, and four fourths make a whole.
Summarized in our own words from Ontario’s overview of The Ontario Curriculum, Grades 1–8: Mathematics (2020) and the BC Mathematics curriculum (Grades 3–4).
