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Worksheet Grade 3 Math

Harborview Test Beakers: A Grade 3 Fractions of a Liter Worksheet

A grade 3 worksheet where students split a one-liter test beaker into equal parts to name unit fractions and write fractions of a liter at a fictional water lab.

Objectives

  1. Students will name a unit fraction 1/b by splitting a liter beaker into equal parts.
  2. Students will write a fraction a/b for several filled parts of a beaker.

Vocabulary

Key words: fraction, unit fraction, beaker, liter

Teacher overview

At the fictional Harborview water lab, testers fill one-liter beakers and read the water level against marks that split the beaker into equal parts. This worksheet uses that setting to build the core grade 3 idea that a fraction 1/b names one of b equal parts, and a/b names a of those parts. Every problem is anchored to a one-liter beaker so the whole stays constant while the number of parts changes. A common misconception is that a larger bottom number means a larger piece, so items 7 and 9 pull that idea into the open and correct it.

Harborview Test Beakers: A Grade 3 Fractions of a Liter Worksheet — Grade 3 Math
Name: ____________________________ Date: ______________

Student Worksheet

At Harborview, testers fill beakers that hold 1 liter. Each beaker is split into equal parts. When an item asks you to shade or fill parts, draw the beaker first.

  1. A beaker is split into 4 equal parts. Each part is what fraction of a liter?
  2. A beaker is split into 2 equal parts. Each part is what fraction of a liter?
  3. A beaker is split into 3 equal parts. Shade 1 part. What fraction did you shade?
  4. A beaker is split into 4 equal parts. 3 parts are full. What fraction is full?
  5. A beaker is split into 6 equal parts. 5 parts are full. What fraction is full?
  6. A beaker is split into 4 equal parts. Fill 2 parts. What fraction of a liter is full?
  7. Which is more of a liter: 1/2 or 1/4? Use the beaker parts to tell how you know.
  8. A beaker is split into 8 equal parts. 3 parts are full. Write the fraction.
  9. Beaker A is split into 2 parts, with 1 part full. Beaker B is split into 4 parts, with 2 parts full. Are they the same amount of water? Tell how you know.
  10. A beaker is split into 3 equal parts. All 3 parts are full. What fraction of a liter is that, and what whole number does it equal?

From Water for Schools (waterforschools.org). This material is in the public domain (CC0) and may be copied, edited, and shared freely.

Answer Key
  1. Answer: 1/4 liter. One of 4 equal parts is 1/4 of the liter.
  2. Answer: 1/2 liter. One of 2 equal parts is 1/2 of the liter.
  3. Answer: 1/3 liter. One shaded part out of 3 equal parts is 1/3.
  4. Answer: 3/4 liter. Three parts of size 1/4 make 3/4 of the liter.
  5. Answer: 5/6 liter. Five parts of size 1/6 make 5/6 of the liter.
  6. Answer: 2/4 liter. Two parts of size 1/4 make 2/4 of the liter.
  7. Answer: 1/2 liter. When a beaker is split into only 2 parts, each part is bigger than when it is split into 4 parts, so 1/2 is more than 1/4.
  8. Answer: 3/8 liter. Three parts of size 1/8 make 3/8 of the liter.
  9. Answer: Yes. Beaker A shows 1/2 and Beaker B shows 2/4, and 1/2 and 2/4 fill the same amount of the liter.
  10. Answer: 3/3 liter. Three parts of size 1/3 make 3/3, which fills the whole beaker and equals 1 liter.

Differentiation

Support

Give students paper strips they can fold into 2, 3, 4, 6, and 8 equal parts and label as beakers, so the fraction is something they build with their hands before they write it. Work items 1 through 3 together, naming the unit fraction each time, before students try items 4 through 6.

Extension

Ask students to line up 1/2, 1/4, and 1/8 of a liter from smallest to largest and explain why the piece gets smaller as the bottom number gets larger. Have them find a second fraction, other than 2/4, that fills the same amount as 1/2 and draw the beaker that shows it.

ELL supports

Pre-teach "beaker," "equal parts," "full," and "shade" with a labeled beaker drawing marked in fourths. Provide a sentence frame for items 7 and 9: "___ is more because each part is ___." Allow shaded beaker drawings as answers for items 1 through 6 in place of written fractions where the objective allows.