Did you know that we’re not supposed to use the phrase improper fractions anymore? Today, we’re going to investigate why you need to stop saying the phrase improper fractions, and what you should say instead as we build our math minds so that we can build the math minds of our students.

Watch the video or read the transcript below:

Here are links to products/activities mentioned in this vlog. (Some may be affiliate links which just means that if you do purchase using my link, the company you purchased from sends me some money. Find more info HERE about that.)

• Teaching Student-Centered Mathematics 3-5 Volume II

Why We Shouldn’t Use The Phrase “Improper Fraction”

A few years ago I was still using the term improper fractions and it wasn’t until I got the newest edition of Teaching Student-Centered Mathematics by John Van de Walle and his colleagues, that there was a little box. It was tiny. It’s like a little box on one of the pages and it says, a teaching tip. And they are encouraging us to not use the phrase improper fractions.

Well that was the first time I had heard that, but it made so much sense because when we say the term improper fraction it makes kids feel like they’re doing something wrong. It’s not a proper way to write a fraction, when in fact it really is a proper way. In a lot of instances, it is actually beneficial to have it written as an improper fraction.

As kids are operating with fractions, it makes it so much easier a lot of times if you are using it as an improper fraction instead of a mixed number. And as kids advance into working with slope and doing operations within algebra, they want to leave it as an improper fraction. It was actually very hard for me to just say improper fraction now because I’ve been doing it for so long, saying the other way.

What We Should Say Instead

Now, what is the other way? What should we be saying instead? Well instead of saying improper fraction we should be calling it a fraction greater than one, or just a fraction. It doesn’t matter! But I honestly prefer calling it a fraction greater than one.

If you think about it as kids, like if they see 5/4, and if we talk about it as wow, you made a fraction greater than one! Instead of saying, wow, that is an improper fraction. What understandings does that build in the students, right?

If we are constantly calling those “fractions greater than one,” they start to realize that when the numerator is larger than the denominator, you have a fraction that is greater than one. And that builds some amazing fraction sense for our students.

I hope that this little short video has helped you build your mind around improper fractions and start using it as fractions greater than one as we help our students build their math minds.

Pin This To Pinterest for Later