Later, as we begin decimals and percents, we will go back to the flap books and under each flap, we'll add the decimal, percent, and a picture depicting each.
Below is the model I made. I usually make the flap books ahead of time, especially if they have a large number of flaps, such as for this activity, which has nine flaps. Some kids can make them easily, but for others it's frustrating and takes away from the activity we are doing.
To make the flap books, you count the number of flaps you will need and divide by 2. Take the first sheet of paper and fold it so that the corners are not lined up- so there is about two inches difference between one side and the other. The next piece of paper is placed underneath that piece, and folded so that it is less than the top piece and longer than the bottom piece. You continue doing this until you have finished all of your flaps. If you have a long armed stapler, that works better for opening the flaps. If not, staple the top (as I did below).
The kids colored the strips and glued them on. Then we cut each strip on the corresponding line. Now I can ask questions such as, "1/2 is equal to how many fourths?" They can use the flaps to determine the answer. Some children need a ruler to line up the 1/2 and see the equivalent fraction.
