Prof. U. A. Athavankar and team at IIT Bombay’s department of have invented an educational and entertainment device to learn concepts of fractions and its addition, subtraction and equivalence for children through game and play. Teaching mathematics with the help of graphical tools is common to hold the learner’s attention. The available games focus more on the demonstrative side directly in limited ways. This device helps learning fractions with interactive fun multiple levels of challenge. It allows strategy based to encourage creativity, requires 2-4 players, and is self-packaged aiding carrying from place to place.

The game is in the form of a checkered board with demarcated placement of playing tile pieces of various shapes. The tile pieces must be combined with one another to make shapes. A designed die is thrown during a turn to determine which fraction tile is to be used, to complete the shape. The person who completes the final shape with minimum use of fraction pieces and with minimum throws of dies wins. Every time the die is thrown players pick up a new tile piece from the pack. The challenge level, learning processes, and sequence can be varied by using varying dies in different numbers giving diverse options.

The device designed at IITB allows flexible approach to understand concepts related to fraction mathematics, through the internalisation of the idea while playing a game.

Indian patent application no. 1167/MUM/2003 Patent grant no. 210463
Inventors: U A Athavankar, and Anushree Agrahari