Fraction Ball: Embodied Fraction and Decimal Learning in a Playful Context

• In Event: Marriott Roundtable Session 29
  In Roundtable Session: Manipulatives, Movement, and Games as Informal Learning Strategies

Abstract

This study evaluated a novel platform for informal math learning called Fraction Ball that provides an embodied, playful learning experience by re-imagining the lines on a basketball court to emphasize fraction and decimal number learning. Via experimental design, we tested Fraction Ball’s ability to improve children’s fraction and decimal knowledge in a K-8 school serving predominantly Latino children from low-income families. The sample consisted of 69 fifth- and sixth-grade students who each engaged in 4 forty-minute sessions of Fraction Ball. Results demonstrated that Fraction Ball significantly improved timed fraction to decimal conversion and other near transfer items. This study provides an example of playful physically-active math learning in a school context. Interpretation and implications of the findings will be discussed.

Authors

• Andres Sebastian Bustamante, University of California - Irvine

• Daniela Alvarez-Vargas, University of California, Irvine

• Kreshnik Nasi Begolli, University of California - Irvine

• Drew Bailey, University of California - Irvine

• Lyndsey Richland, University of California - Irvine