FREE Thanksgiving Clip Cards for Subtracting Fractions with Common Denominators

Thanksgiving Clip Cards

Use these fun Thanksgiving clip cards to help your child practice subtracting fractions with common denominators. This free Thanksgiving math activity includes clip cards and a worksheet.

Pies! Do you like them? Which one is your favorite?

For Thanksgiving and Christmas, my mom makes the most wonderful chocolate pie… and it has always been my favorite. Then I discovered a peanut butter pie at a local restaurant, and now I’m not sure I have a favorite. They are both SOOO good.

Today, I have some fun Thanksgiving pie clip cards to help your child learn how to subtract fractions with common denominators.

Prep-Work

With just a little cutting you will be ready to use these clip cards.

1. First, print off the clip cards and cut out.
2. Next, laminate them.
3. Finally, gather up dry erase markers and clothespins.

Subtract Fractions with the Same Denominator

Now comes the fun part. It’s time to do some subtracting!!!!

The concept is very simple, and as long as children already have an understanding of fractions they should be good to go.

If you aren’t sure of a student’s grasp of fractions, you may want to take a quick step back and make sure they understand what a numerator and denominator are. (This teaching numerators and denominators activity will help!!)

Once that is done, it is time to analyze the problem. Ask the children some simple questions to see what they can tell you.

1. What do you see? Do you see any similarities? What is different?
2. Can you compare the fraction to the pie?
3. How are the answers the same? How are they different?

By doing this, the children are not just jumping in and solving a problem. They are taking a step back and observing….and this observation can help them solve the problem better.

Subtracting Fractions with Common Denominators Example

So if we look at the card, the children might say this.

1. I see a subtraction sign.
2. Ohhh, I noticed that both the fractions have a denominator of 4.
3. The numerators are different though.
4. I noticed that the pie is divided into four pieces, just like the denominator 4.
5. The pie has three pieces, just like the numerator 3.
6. All the answers have a denominator as 4.

Solving Subtracting Fractions with Common Denominators

After all the observations, it is time to solve. First, we would want to represent the fraction, but that step is already done for the children!

Next, all they have to do is cross off the pieces of the pie that were eaten. In the example above, we see that two-fourths have been eaten, so we are going to cross off two pieces of pie.

Finally, we determine what is left. Only one! It takes four pieces to make a whole… so my answer is 1/4.

Here is another one. We can see that 2/3 has already been represented. Now all the student has to do is cross off 1/3. All that is left is one out of 3, so the answer is 1/3.

Try It On Your Own

The last page of this FREE printable for subtracting fractions with common denominators is a fun one. The children get to create their own expressions, color in the pie and then solve. It is a great ending activity!!!

I don’t know about you, but I’m ready for some pie and making a little subtraction happen as I chow down.

Subtracting Fractions with Common Denominators Worksheet

Below are the free clips cards and worksheet. To download, click on the download button, save it to your device and then print it.