Tape Diagram Maker

About this tool

A tape diagram is a drawing of a word problem. It uses rectangles, like pieces of tape, to show how quantities are related. Students who draw one before they calculate usually pick the right operation, because the picture shows whether the problem is about putting parts together, finding a difference, or splitting something into equal units.

This maker covers five kinds of problems. Part-whole tapes show two parts and a total. Comparison tapes show two bars of different lengths and the gap between them. Ratio tapes show equal units, so a ratio of 3 : 5 becomes three blocks above five blocks. Fraction tapes split a quantity into equal parts and shade some of them. Multiplicative tapes show one quantity that is a number of times as large as another.

Every problem is built so the answer is a whole number, and each answer is worked out from the diagram, not from the story, so the two always agree. The answer key shows the filled-in diagram with the value of each unit and the steps in order.

How to use it

1. Choose a diagram type, or leave it on mixed to practice them all.
2. Set the difficulty. Easier sets use small numbers and ratios with small terms. Harder sets use larger numbers and ratios such as 4 : 7.
3. Press New worksheet for another set. Print it, then use the answer key to check the diagrams and the steps.
4. To make one diagram of your own, choose Build my own diagram, then type labels and numbers. You can save the picture as an SVG or PNG.

Reading a ratio tape

If the ratio of cats to dogs is 3 : 5, draw 3 equal blocks for the cats and 5 equal blocks for the dogs. If there are 64 animals in all, the tape has 3 + 5 = 8 blocks, and each block is 64 ÷ 8 = 8. The dogs are 5 blocks, which is 40. The picture makes the steps clear: count the units, find the size of one unit, then multiply.

When to use which tape

Use part-whole when pieces are combined into a total. Use comparison when two amounts are being compared. Use ratio when quantities are shared in a fixed pattern. Use a fraction tape when one quantity is a fraction of another.