Currently $3.99 – Slice Fractions was recently listed as one of Apple’s Best of 2014:Apps. Kids learn about fractions as they slice through ice and lava to clear a path for a cute mammoth. Along the way they collect silly hats for the mammoth to wear. As they solve the app’s 90+ physics puzzles, they are exposed to key concepts of fractions – partitioning, equivalent fraction, numerator/denominator notation, ordering, subtracting from a whole, etc. Kids will enjoy learning about fractions in this wordless environment that seems more like a game than math lessons. I love that the app encourages kids to be problem solvers. Its replay button permits them to try each puzzle again and again until they figure it out. Hints are only given when support is needed. The end result is that kids are learning through discovery! It’s no wonder that this app has received so many accolades: Apple Editor’s Choice, Editor’s Choice for Excellence in Design: Children’s Technology Review, Winner of a Parents’ Choice Gold Award 2014, Gold Medal Winner 2014: International Serious Play Awards, and Best Family Friendly Game 2014: Indie Prize Showcase Awards.

Common Core Standards met:

• 2.G.2. Partition a rectangle into rows and columns of same-size squares and count to find the total number of them.
• 2.G.3. Partition circles and rectangles into two, three, or four equal shares, describe the shares using the words halves, thirds, half of, a third of, etc., and describe the whole as two halves, three thirds, four fourths. Recognize that equal shares of identical wholes need not have the same shape.
• 3.NF.1. Understand a fraction 1/b as the quantity formed by 1 part when a whole is partitioned into b equal parts; understand a fraction a/b as the quantity formed by a parts of size 1/b.
• 3.NF.3 – Explain equivalence of fractions and compare fractions by reasoning about their size. Understand two fractions as equivalent (equal) if they are the same size. Recognize and generate simple equivalent fractions, e.g., 1/2 = 2/4, 4/6 = 2/3).
• 4.NF.2. Compare two fractions with different numerators and different denominators, e.g., by creating common denominators or numerators, or by comparing to a benchmark fraction such as 1/2.
• 4.NF.3b. Decompose a fraction into a sum of fractions with the same denominator in more than one way, recording each decomposition by an equation.

Download link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/slice-fractions/id794730213?mt=8&uo=4

From England and currently $1.99 –  Squeebles Fractions, an app for the iPhone/iPad that is designed to teach fractions to 7 – 11 year olds. The Squeebles want to enter a cake making contest but their ingredients have been stolen by the Math Monster. By working on the app’s 4 games, kids help the Squeebles earn back their ingredients. In Piece of Cake, kids drag the fractional part of a cake to a Squeebles when he asks for it. The easy mode covers halves, fourths, thirds. The hard mode cover fractions to tenths. In Tricky Pairs, kids have to match pairs of equivalent fractions. In the easy mode they match 4 pairs and in the hard mode they match up to 9 pairs. Think Big has kids feeding cake to the Squeeble that calls out the biggest fraction. The easy mode covers halves, fourths, thirds. The hard mode cover fractions to twelfths. Super Sums requires kids to add fractions as quickly as they can and has three levels of difficulty. After earning ingredients, kids can create cakes and enter them in The Cake Show – fun! Another great thing about this app is that you can have more than one player. My only concern is that the easy mode of Piece of Cake requires kids to know some equivalent fractions – for example, it asked kids to pick 3/4 of a cake divided into 8 pieces, 1/3 of a cake divided into 6 pieces, etc. I wish it would have required a basic knowledge of fractions in the easy mode then moved on to equivalent fractions in the hard mode. This app is cute, fun, and provides great practice for a wide spectrum of kids.

Common Core Standards met:

• 3.NF.3 – Explain equivalence of fractions and compare fractions by reasoning about their size. Understand two fractions as equivalent (equal) if they are the same size, or the same point on a number line. Recognize and generate simple equivalent fractions, e.g., 1/2 = 2/4, 4/6 = 2/3).
• 4.NF.3 – a. Understand addition and subtraction of fractions as joining and separating parts referring to the same whole.

Download link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/squeebles-fractions/id557576867?mt=8&uo=4

Currently $1.99 but often “goes free” – Everyday Mathematics® Equivalent Fractions™  for iPhone/iPad is fun easy way to reinforce fraction concepts. Note: the app uses a digital version of the fraction cards from the Everyday Math third grade book.

Common Core Standards met:

• 3.NF.3 – Explain equivalence of fractions and compare fractions by reasoning about their size. Understand two fractions as equivalent (equal) if they are the same size, or the same point on a number line. Recognize and generate simple equivalent fractions, e.g., 1/2 = 2/4, 4/6 = 2/3). Explain why the fractions are equivalent, e.g., by using a visual fraction model.

Download link: https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/everyday-mathematics-equivalent/id417016316?mt=8&uo=4

Currently $1.99 – Fraction Wall, an app designed for small group or independent learning. This educational app has 4 sections: Teacher Tool, Complete the Wall, 2 Player Game, and Addition. The Teacher Tool can be used to show/discover equivalent fractions or it can be used to answer equivalent fraction problems. Complete the Wall has kids moving bricks on top of equivalent fractions. There are 4 levels: level 1 – halves and quarter; level 2 – halves, thirds, quarters and sixths; level 3 – halves, thirds; quarters fifths, sixths, tenths; level 4 – halves up to tenth. 2 Player Game has kids competing against each other to be the first to fill their wall of equivalent fractions. Addition has kids adding fractions to answer multiple choice questions. There is a clickable wall to help them visualize the answer if needed. This section also has 4 levels. The app can be customized to exclude more difficult fractions from the wall. This app would work well in the classroom – great for practicing and/or for using as a tool to visualize answers. Much more fun than a worksheet for practicing fractions!

Common Core Standards met:

• 3.NF.3 – Explain equivalence of fractions and compare fractions by reasoning about their size. Understand two fractions as equivalent (equal) if they are the same size. Recognize and generate simple equivalent fractions, e.g., 1/2 = 2/4, 4/6 = 2/3).