How to Use Interactive Percentage
- Pick the level. Starter is a first look at 50%, 25%, 75% and tenths. P5 and P6 follow what is usually taught about percentages in Singapore primary schools. The note under the buttons says what each level covers.
- Pick an activity. Start with Shade and Name so that percentages feel like pieces of a whole, then move on to changing between fractions, decimals and percentages, and to finding a percentage of a number.
- Choose 5, 10 or 20 questions and press Start.
- Answer each question by tapping pieces of the pie, tapping a choice, or typing a number. Press Check (or Enter) to mark it.
- Read the worked answer after a mistake. The question is saved for the fix round.
- Press “Fix the ones I missed” at the end to try only the wrong questions again.
The Four Activities
| Activity | What your child does | What it builds |
|---|---|---|
| Shade the percentage | Taps pieces of a percentage pie to colour in an amount such as 75%. The pie may be cut into 2, 4, 5, 10 or 20 pieces, each labelled with its own percentage. | Percent as “out of 100”; the benchmark percentages 25%, 50%, 75% and the tenths |
| Name the percentage | Looks at a shaded pie and picks (Starter) or types (P5 and P6) the percentage it shows. | Counting equal pieces and multiplying by the size of one piece |
| Fraction, decimal, % | Fills in the missing form in a row such as 3/5 = 0.6 = 60%. Fractions must be in simplest form. | The three ways of writing the same amount, and moving between them |
| Percentage of a number | Works out amounts such as 30% of 60. At P6 it also finds the whole when a part is known (25% of a number is 12) and what percentage one number is of another (15 out of 60). | The 10% method, using quarters and halves, and the unitary method |
What Each Level Covers
| Level | Percentages in the questions |
|---|---|
| Starter | Halves, quarters and tenths as percentages (50%, 25%, 75%, 10%, 20%…); multiple-choice naming; percentages of small numbers such as 50% of 40. |
| P5 | Pies in fifths and twentieths as well; fractions with denominators 2, 4, 5, 10, 20, 25, 50 and 100 as decimals and percentages; any multiple of 5% of a number. |
| P6 | Eighths (12.5%) as well; finding the whole from a part; finding what percentage one number is of another; percentages such as 15% and 35% of a number. |
Why a Percentage Pie Helps
A percentage is a fraction with 100 as the denominator. Children who are comfortable with fraction circles already know that a circle cut into four equal pieces shows quarters. The percentage pie keeps that picture and changes the labels: each quarter is 25%, so three pieces are 75%. Because every piece is labelled, the link between the fraction and the percentage is in front of your child on every question.
The hundred square does the same job for percentages that are not neat fractions. Thirty-seven squares out of a hundred is 37%, 37/100 and 0.37 all at once. The explorer above shows the pie and the hundred square side by side, so your child can see that 25% fills a quarter of the pie and 25 of the 100 squares.
The 10% Method for Percentage of a Number
The method most children find easiest is to find 10% first, by dividing by 10, and then build the percentage they need. For 30% of 60, 10% is 6, so 30% is 3 × 6 = 18. For 5%, halve the 10%. For 25%, 50% and 75%, it is often quicker to use the fraction: 25% of 60 is a quarter of 60, which is 15. When an answer is wrong, the page shows the method that fits the question and a pie split into the actual amounts, so “30% of 60” is shown as three pieces of 6.
Tips for Parents and Teachers
- Learn the benchmarks by heart. 50% = 1/2 = 0.5, 25% = 1/4 = 0.25, 75% = 3/4 = 0.75, 10% = 1/10 = 0.1, 20% = 1/5 = 0.2. Most exam questions lean on these.
- Estimate first. Before working out 35% of 80, ask whether the answer will be more or less than half of 80. This catches slips such as multiplying by 35 and forgetting to divide by 100.
- Use real prices. A 20% discount on a $45 toy, or the GST on a meal, makes the 10% method feel useful.
- Revise fractions first if needed. If simplest form is still shaky, spend a few rounds on our interactive fractions page before the fraction, decimal and percentage activity.
- Practise on paper too. The worksheet generator prints percentage worksheets with answer keys.
Nothing to Install, Nothing Stored on Our Server
Interactive Percentage runs entirely in your browser on any phone, tablet or computer. There is no account and no download. The last level and activity you chose are remembered on this device, and nothing about your child’s answers is sent to us.
Frequently Asked Questions
A percentage pie is a circle that stands for 100%, cut into equal pieces that are each labelled with their percentage: 2 pieces of 50%, 4 of 25%, 5 of 20%, 10 of 10% or 20 of 5%. Shading pieces shows a percentage as part of a whole, the same way a fraction circle shows a fraction.
Percentages are usually taught in Primary 5 and Primary 6. Starter is a first look at 50%, 25%, 75% and tenths for children who know fractions but have not met percentages yet. P5 covers percentages as parts of 100, changing between fractions, decimals and percentages, and finding a percentage of a number. P6 adds finding the whole from a part and working out what percentage one number is of another.
Find 10% first by dividing by 10, then build up. For 30% of 60: 10% of 60 is 6, so 30% is 3 × 6 = 18. For quarters, use the fraction: 25% is 1/4, so 25% of 60 is 60 ÷ 4 = 15. The page shows these steps, with a percentage pie split into the amounts, whenever an answer is wrong.
The right answer appears at once with a picture or the worked steps. At the end of the round, the “Fix the ones I missed” button brings back only the questions that were wrong, so your child does not have to redo the whole round.
Yes. There is no account, no download and no limit on rounds. It works in any browser on a phone, tablet or computer, and nothing about your child’s answers is sent to us.