Fraction Pizzeria

What your child learns

• Equal parts. Halves, thirds, fourths, sixths and eighths (Grades 2 and 3), plus twelfths at the end.
• Fractions as parts of a whole. 3/4 means cut into 4 equal slices and take 3 (Grade 3).
• Comparing fractions with the same denominator, the same numerator, and finally different ones (Grades 3 and 4).
• Equivalent fractions by re-slicing: 1/2 is the same pizza as 2/4 and 4/8 (Grades 3 and 4).
• Fractions on a number line, including numbers past 1 like 5/4 (Grade 3).
• Putting fractions together. Half pepperoni and a third mushroom means cutting into sixths (Grades 4 and 5).

How it works

The kitchen has four kinds of order. Each one is read aloud and shown on an order ticket.

• Make a pizza. Pick a cutter (2, 3, 4, 6 or 8 slices, and 12 in the last shift), then tap or drag across slices to add toppings and tap Bake. Any correct cut works, so 1/2 made from 4 of 8 slices counts. If your child picks a cut that can't make the order, Basil explains why, for example that 1/3 of 4 slices isn't a whole number of slices.
• Which is more pizza? Tap the bigger amount. Later shifts hide the pizzas in closed boxes, so your child has to reason from the fractions alone, and sometimes the answer is that they're the same.
• Same amount. One pizza shows 2/3. Tap slices on a pizza cut into sixths to match it.
• Pizza Lane. Deliver to a house on a number line by tapping the right spot, from 0 to 1 and later 0 to 2.

Each shift is five orders, so it takes a few minutes.

Shifts and how it adapts

There are twelve shifts: Halves and Fourths, Thirds and More, Bigger Slices, Lots of Slices, Two Toppings, Who Gets More?, Same Amount, Mix and Match, Pizza Lane, Closed Boxes, Long Lane and Head Chef. Shift 1 opens for everyone, and choosing ages 8 to 11 opens the first four right away.

Each type of order is tracked on its own. Orders your child misses come back sooner, and ones they handle easily fade out. A wrong pizza is never thrown away. Basil says what the pizza shows now ("Pepperoni should cover 3/4. Now it covers 2/4"), draws dashed guide lines for the fraction asked for, and lets your child fix it. Compare orders show fraction bars side by side so the bigger amount is easy to see. After a second miss, Basil shows the answer, explains it, and a similar order comes back a little later in the shift.

All five orders right on the first try earns 3 stars, and four earns 2. Two stars, or playing a shift twice, opens the next one. Finishing shifts adds new toppings to the kitchen (olives, green pepper, basil, pineapple and onion), and stars unlock new ovens, from a blue tile oven to a golden one. Kids collect stickers for the Sticker Book shared by all our learning games too.

Today's orders

Today's orders is six orders that are the same for everyone that day, one from each of six shifts picked for the age setting. Finishing it keeps a day streak going.

Tips for grown-ups

• Cut a real pizza, sandwich or tortilla together. Ask: are the pieces the same size? What do we call each piece?
• Ask "Would you rather have 1/3 or 1/4 of a cookie?" Then talk about why fewer pieces means bigger pieces.
• Fold paper strips into halves, fourths and eighths and line them up. Your child will see that 2/4 and 4/8 match 1/2.
• When your child gets a closed box order right, ask them to explain how they knew. Saying the reason out loud is most of the learning.

Privacy and safety

Fraction Pizzeria has no ads, no accounts and no leaderboards, and it doesn't collect anything about your child. Progress is saved only in the browser on your device. The only links go to our learning games page and the Sticker Book. It's free and plays in the browser on a phone, tablet or computer, with nothing to download.

Questions