Quick and Easy Card Game for Adding Fractions

Students often need extra practice with adding fractions, especially when they aren’t technically learning about it anymore. Those fractions pop up in so many situations! A card game for adding fractions can help.’Teaching 6th grade math always seems to come with the need to review much of what students learned about in previous years. This includes:

• identifying fractions
• equivalent fraction
• improper fractions and mixed numbers
• adding fractions
• subtracting fractions
• multiplying fractions

Have you found this as well? Do students need to review these things at the grade level you teach?

Quick Teacher Survey About Fractions

Just to be sure I wasn’t the only one thinking students always need some fraction review, I put a quick poll on Instagram:

• “Math teachers, do you feel like your students always need SOME kind of review?”
• 100% of responders chose “Yes, always.”

So, with the idea of review and practice in mind, I have a quick, easy-prep card game for adding fractions for you! You can use this during your fraction addition unit. OR you can use it as a center activity to keep reviewing fraction addition any time during the school year.

What is This Card Game for Adding Fractions?

This card game for adding fractions is “Make One.” 

Students use fraction cards, which you can access for free below, and their goal during the game is to find as many sets of fraction cards that add together to equal one as possible.

Preparing for the Card Game for Adding Fractions

As I said, the prep is quick. The PDF with the cards includes 36 fraction cards, which should be good for one group of 3-4 players.

• For 5 or more players, you may want to make 2 copies of each page to give you a deck of 72 cards.

To prep for the game:

• print 1-2 sets of cards per group
• laminate, if you have time; if you don’t have time, card stock would work well too
• cut the cards out

Playing the Card Game for Adding Fractions

1) Deal 5 cards to each player.
2) Put the remaining cards face down in a pile in the middle of the game area.
3) To begin playing, Player One puts down any combination of cards from their hand that total 1 when added. Players may use as many cards as they’d like to reach 1.

• The cards should be placed face up so other players can see what has been played.

4) Player One may then ask any other player for a specific card to ‘make one’ when added to a card in his/her hand.

• If the player has the requested card or one equivalent to it in their hand, he/she gives it to Player One, and Player One puts down their ‘one’; if not, Player One draws the top card from the pile.
• If the card drawn is the card Player One was asking for, he/she uses it to put down the cards that equal one. Player One can continue asking players for cards/drawing cards until she/he can’t ‘make one.’
• If the card is NOT the one that was being asked for, Player One’s turn is over, and the player to the left takes her/his turn.
• Players will need to think about equivalent fractions when being asked for a card. For example, a player may ask for 4/20. Players need to remember that if they have a fraction equivalent to 4/20 (1/5), they DO give that card to the requesting player.

**Players may want to phrase their question as “Do you have ____, or any fractions equivalent to _____?”

5) The game continues with each player taking their turns until a player ‘goes out’ by playing his/her last card or until the cards in the middle pile are gone.

Additional Example of How Cards Can be Used

Looking at the set of cards in the picture, we can see this player’s hand of cards has 5/10, 1/4, 1/4, 4/8, and 1/20.

• This player could choose to use 5/10, 1/4, and 1/4 to make 1, using up more of the cards in their hand.
• They could also choose 4/8, 1/4, and 1/4, or 5/10 and 4/8.

After playing the ‘1’ of their choice this player can then ask other players for another card to make one, like 1/2 or 19/20.

Keeping Score

Once a player ‘goes out’, players tally their scores:

• Players receive 1 point for each set of cards that equal 1
• The player who ‘goes out’ adds 2 extra points to their score

The player with the most points wins.

Accessing the Make One Game Cards

You can access these Make One cards, as well as other fraction activities, by selecting the button below.
I hope you can use this card game for some fraction addition practice and review!

Interested in more fraction and fraction operation content?
Check out the program, Fractions: From Foundations to Operations