Accuracy of Area Model and Number Line Representations of Fractions for Students with Learning Disabilities

Assessment results are used to investigate relations between performance on a fraction number line estimation task and a circular area model estimation task for students with LD in Grades 6–8. Results indicate that students’ abilities to represent fractions on number lines and on circular area models are distinct skills. In addition, accurate fraction magnitude estimation using number lines was more strongly related to other fractions skills (e.g., fraction magnitude comparison) than accurate fraction magnitude estimation using circular area models. Our findings call for greater integration of the number line into early fractions instruction, and highlight the importance of explicitly teaching students to make connections between different visual representations of fractions. Implications for research and practice are presented.