Math: Using Manipulatives to Represent and Operate with Fractions, Decimals, and Percents (Grades 3-7)

Fractions and decimals don’t have to be frustrating! With the right tools and models, these abstract concepts can become meaningful, visual, and accessible for all students.

In this interactive, hands-on workshop designed for math educators in Grades 3–7, we’ll explore how manipulatives like fraction strips, decimal grids, fraction tiles/circles, place value chips, number lines, and base-ten blocks can be used to develop a deep understanding of operations, equivalence, and place value relationships.

You'll engage in purposeful tasks that connect visual and concrete representations to symbolic reasoning, helping students build fluency. Leave with a toolkit of ready-to-use tasks, strategies, and routines that connect visual models to symbolic reasoning—and empower your students to tackle fractions and decimals with confidence.

Participants will:

• Understand the role of manipulatives in building conceptual understanding of fractions and decimals
• Explore concrete models that support key concepts such as equivalence, operations, and place value
• Engage in tasks that link visual representations to symbolic notation and reasoning
• Experience instructional routines that promote discussion, reasoning, and flexibility with rational numbers
• Leave with practical tools and strategies to support all students in developing fluency and confidence with fractions and decimals