The Doorbell Rang

Pat Hutchins shares the story of Ma and her plate of cookies. She tells her two children they will have to share the cookies. Then the doorbell rings, and another person arrives. The children offer to share the cookies, and then they need to divide them by three. The doorbell continues to ring, and each time adds more people to share the cookies. 

Eventually, they are down to one cookie each, and the doorbell rings again – it's Grandma with another tray of cookies! This is an excellent story about division, both in math and in music. Use it to divide a whole note into two, then four, then eight, then sixteen, etc. It's also a wonderful example of generosity and sharing.