Percentages are one of those topics where a Year 6 class can be miles apart. Some students still aren't sure that 50% means half. Others can work out a sale price in their head. A single worksheet never fits everyone, so I write my percentage colour by number activities at three levels.
Why colour by number works for percentages
Colour by number gives students a reason to get the answer right. Each answer is a number in the picture, and each question tells them which colour to use. If they can't find their answer in the picture, they know something has gone wrong and they go back to their working. That built-in self-check is gold in a busy classroom, because students fix their own mistakes before they come to you.
It also keeps fast finishers happy. While the rest of the class finishes, they can colour, and the finished picture is something they're proud to show.
Three levels: Bronze, Silver and Gold
All three levels practise percentage of an amount with the Stage 3 benchmark percentages: 10%, 25%, 50% and 75%. What changes is the number of steps.
- Bronze (one-step): find a percentage of an amount. "A bike trail is 36 km long. Ella has ridden 75% of it. How far has she ridden?" (Bronze T. rex pack)
- Silver (two-step): find the percentage, then use it. Discounts, sale prices and "how much is left" problems. "A fossil kit costs $60. It is 25% off. What is the sale price?" (Silver Brachiosaurus pack)
- Gold (multi-step): plan the steps first. "40 volunteers each collect $150. 25% of the total pays for running costs. How much is left for the animals?" (Gold Velociraptor pack)
Because the topic is the same, I can teach one lesson to the whole class and then hand out the level that suits each group. Nobody is doing "the easy sheet". They're doing Bronze, Silver or Gold, and plenty of students ask to move up.
Realistic dinosaurs for older students
Years 5 and 6 students tell me cute cartoon animals feel babyish. So I hand-drew realistic dinosaurs for these worksheets: a Tyrannosaurus rex, a Brachiosaurus and a Velociraptor, each in a scene with a volcano, palm trees and ferns. The picture fills the whole A4 page and has a bold outline, so students know where to stop colouring.
Keeping it Stage 3
Every main question uses the Stage 3 content from the NSW syllabus (MA3-RN-03): benchmark percentages, their fraction and decimal equivalents, and sale prices after discounts of 10%, 25% and 50%. Percentages like 15% or 30% are Stage 4, so each level has just two Extension questions at the end for students who want a challenge. They're labelled Extension and aren't part of the picture, so nobody gets stuck.
How I run the lesson
- Warm up with a hundred grid: shade 25%, 50% and 10%.
- Teach the benchmark table: 50% divide by 2, 25% divide by 4, 10% divide by 10, 75% divide by 4 then multiply by 3.
- Model two worked examples on the slides.
- Students solve the 20 problems in their booklet, showing their working.
- They find each answer in the picture and colour it.
- We check against the finished picture and the answer key.
Most classes need one to two lessons. The colouring also makes a great early finisher or relief lesson once the problems are done.
Get the worksheets
- Percentage of an Amount Colour by Number Bundle: all three levels, save 33%.
- Bronze: One-Step Word Problems with a hand-drawn T. rex.
- Silver: Two-Step Word Problems with a hand-drawn Brachiosaurus.
- Gold: Multi-Step Word Problems with a hand-drawn Velociraptor.
For more ideas on teaching the benchmarks, read Teaching Percentage of an Amount in Years 5–6.