Skill: Partition shapes into fourths

To partition a shape into fourths, divide the whole shape into 4 regions with equal area.

Example: Partition a rectangle into fourths.

1. Start with the whole rectangle.

2. Draw a line straight down the middle. Now there are 2 equal parts.

3. Draw a line straight across the middle. This makes 4 equal regions.

+-------+-------+
|       |       |
|       |       |
+-------+-------+
|       |       |
|       |       |
+-------+-------+

4. Count the equal regions. There are 4 regions, so each region is one fourth, written as $\frac{1}{4}$.

The four fourths together make the whole rectangle:

$$\frac{1}{4}+\frac{1}{4}+\frac{1}{4}+\frac{1}{4}=1$$

Remember: The regions do not have to look exactly the same. They must have the same area.