By Claire Barnes, Willow Dene School Halves - Splitting A multi-sensory presentation to promote the concept, vocabulary and symbols of halving and skills dividing an even set into two identical halves By Claire Barnes, Willow Dene School

Click to make the set of objects appear Click to make the set of objects appear. Each object is accompanied by a sound. Encourage the students to count along with these. Click to make the numeral associated with the set appear, and say it aloud. Click again to make the “half icon” appear, and a line that divides the set in two. The two halves will move away from each other to make them more visually clear. Click to count how many objects are in the first set and click again to count the objects in the second set. Emphasise that there is the same number of objects in each set. The next click will cause the first set to dim, and a further click will trigger the second set to brighten in turn with a sound. Encourage the students to count along with the audio prompt. Click to make a number sentence appear “Half of x is…” and read it aloud, encouraging students to say the answer before you click again to reveal it. Repeat for the remaining slides. For slide number 8, click once to make each of the slides appear. Ask students if they remember what half of the numbers shown are. Click to make the question appear, then click again to make the number line appear. The next click will cause each of the slides to flash in turn and highlight the corresponding number on the number line. A further click will make the odd numbers shrink and the last click will make the point that all of the numbers are even. For slide number 9, click to make the number line appear with an arrow pointing to number five. Click to make the number line fade, leaving the 5 visible. The next click will trigger five objects to appear. Click to make the “half icon” and dividing line to appear, then click to count the number of objects in the first set and click again to count the second set. Point out that there are different numbers of objects in each set. Suggest trying again. Click to make the “half icon” and line disappear, then click again to make it reappear in a different position. Again, click to count each set. Click to go to slide 10. Read the text at the top of the slide. Click to divide the set. Discuss the outcome at a level appropriate to the students’ ability (e.g. “Would half a ball be good to play with?” or “What would happen if you were halving an odd number of people?”).

8 2 2 1 1 4 4 3 3 half 4 of 8 is

6 1 3 2 2 1 3 half 3 of 6 is

4 1 1 2 2 half 2 of 4 is

2 1 half 1 1 of 2 is

10 2 1 2 1 3 3 4 4 5 5 half 5 of 10 is

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Can you remember which numbers you have halved? What do you notice about them? 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 They are all even numbers.

What happens if you try to halve an odd number? 5 1 1 2 1 half 1 2 3 2 2 3 half

You would have to cut one of the things in half!! 5 half