Free printable Halloween activity

Candy Corn Fraction Lab

A printable 20-problem Halloween fraction activity with models, equivalent fractions, comparisons, operations, word problems, and an answer key.

Grades 3–520 problemsAbout 55 minutesAnswers included
Download the free activity PDF

Why this activity works

Candy corn naturally suggests part-whole models, but this lab moves beyond coloring. Students represent fractions in multiple ways, justify comparisons, combine quantities, and solve themed situations that reveal whether the denominator and numerator have real meaning.

Teaching note

Actual candy is optional. Buttons, cereal pieces, or quick sketches work just as well. Ask students to explain what the denominator counts before they calculate.

Materials

  • Pencil
  • Crayons or colored pencils
  • Optional counters or candy corn

How to use it

Work through the five lab stations. Draw fraction models when useful and simplify every final fraction.

Complete activity preview

All prompts below are included in the printable version. Keep the answer key closed until the activity is complete.

Station 1: Build the batch

Represent portions of one collection and connect pictures to symbols.

  1. 1A mix has 12 pieces: 5 orange, 4 yellow, and 3 white. What fraction is orange?
  2. 2What fraction of the same mix is not white?
  3. 3Draw a 15-piece mix in which 25\displaystyle \frac{2}{5} of the pieces are yellow. How many should be yellow?
  4. 4A tray has 18\displaystyle 18 pieces and 59\displaystyle \frac{5}{9} are orange. How many orange pieces are there?

Station 2: Equivalent recipes

Generate equivalent fractions and simplify ratios in a recipe context.

  1. 5A recipe uses 46\displaystyle \frac{4}{6} cup of cereal. Write the amount in simplest form.
  2. 6Complete the equivalent fraction: 34=n20\displaystyle \frac{3}{4}=\frac{n}{20}.
  3. 7Are 69\displaystyle \frac{6}{9} and 812\displaystyle \frac{8}{12} equivalent? Explain.
  4. 8Complete 78=n40\displaystyle \frac{7}{8}=\frac{n}{40}.

Station 3: Compare the cauldrons

Compare fractions using common denominators or benchmarks.

  1. 9Cauldron A is 58\displaystyle \frac{5}{8} full and Cauldron B is 23\displaystyle \frac{2}{3} full. Which is fuller?
  2. 10Order from least to greatest: 34\displaystyle \frac{3}{4}, 512\displaystyle \frac{5}{12}, 23\displaystyle \frac{2}{3}.
  3. 11Without multiplying, decide which is greater: 710\displaystyle \frac{7}{10} or 712\displaystyle \frac{7}{12}. Explain.
  4. 12Place 1112\displaystyle \frac{11}{12} and 78\displaystyle \frac{7}{8} in order and justify with a common denominator.

Station 4: Mix and share

Add, subtract, and multiply fractions in meaningful quantities.

  1. 13A bowl contains 38\displaystyle \frac{3}{8} pound of one mix and 14\displaystyle \frac{1}{4} pound of another. How much in all?
  2. 14A 1 12\displaystyle \frac{1}{2}-pound bag has 56\displaystyle \frac{5}{6} pound left. How much was used?
  3. 15Three friends each receive 29\displaystyle \frac{2}{9} of a tray. What fraction of the tray is distributed?
  4. 16Find 214×23\displaystyle 2\frac{1}{4}\times\frac{2}{3}.

Station 5: Fraction mysteries

Reason backward and explain fraction claims.

  1. 17Five pieces are 14\displaystyle \frac{1}{4} of a collection. How many pieces are in the whole collection?
  2. 18A student says 49\displaystyle \frac{4}{9} + 39\displaystyle \frac{3}{9} = 718\displaystyle \frac{7}{18}. Correct the error.
  3. 19Design a 24-piece mix that is 12\displaystyle \frac{1}{2} orange, 13\displaystyle \frac{1}{3} yellow, and the rest white. Give each count.
  4. 20After 38\displaystyle \frac{3}{8} of a batch is eaten, 25\displaystyle 25 pieces remain. How many pieces were in the batch?
Open the complete solutions

Open-ended and experimental responses may differ when the reasoning meets the stated conditions.

Station 1: Build the batch

1. 512\displaystyle \frac{5}{12}

2. 912\displaystyle \frac{9}{12}, or 34\displaystyle \frac{3}{4}

3. 6 pieces

4. 10\displaystyle 10 pieces

Station 2: Equivalent recipes

5. 23\displaystyle \frac{2}{3} cup

6. n=15\displaystyle n=15

7. Yes; both simplify to 23\displaystyle \frac{2}{3}

8. n=35\displaystyle n=35

Station 3: Compare the cauldrons

9. Cauldron B; 23\displaystyle \frac{2}{3} > 58\displaystyle \frac{5}{8}

10. 512\displaystyle \frac{5}{12}, 23\displaystyle \frac{2}{3}, 34\displaystyle \frac{3}{4}

11. 710\displaystyle \frac{7}{10}; tenths are larger pieces than twelfths

12. 78<1112\displaystyle \frac{7}{8}<\frac{11}{12} because 2124<2224\displaystyle \frac{21}{24}<\frac{22}{24}

Station 4: Mix and share

13. 58\displaystyle \frac{5}{8} pound

14. 23\displaystyle \frac{2}{3} pound

15. 69\displaystyle \frac{6}{9}, or 23\displaystyle \frac{2}{3}

16. 112\displaystyle 1\frac{1}{2}

Station 5: Fraction mysteries

17. 20 pieces

18. Add the numerators but keep the common denominator: 79\displaystyle \frac{7}{9}

19. 12 orange, 8 yellow, 4 white

20. 40\displaystyle 40 pieces

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