Is there such a thing as an equal halve

I think some people’s idea of cutting something in half means just cutting into two (not necessarily equal) pieces - especially if [cake] is involved!

My GCs knew that if they had to share anything by cutting it in half, the one who cut it didn’t get the biggest ‘half’ even though , to them, “it really really was in half, honestly Nanny”

I'm not quite sure what you're asking Elizabeth1 but when my children had to share, the rule was 'one to cut and one to choose' You'd be amazed at how accurately they learned to halve!

Dictionary definition.....Half.
... one of two parts of a divisible whole, equal or not.

I would automatically cut as equal as possible unless told otherwise.

I’m not quite sure what your question is, but having taught children of this age perhaps I can explain:
There is a difference between cutting some thing into two pieces and cutting into two equal pieces. This sounds like a fun activity to introduce this concept. The children probably “compared” to “check”- useful vocabulary in maths. Later, they may be asked to halve two quantities: e.g. divide or share these ten counters into two equal halves. They will also compare mass- e.g will these two cups of sand balance? And length- can you paint a line of equal length, and time etc etc.The concept of “equal” is important in later calculations. Hope that helps.

With our two, the one delegated to cut knew immediately that was not going to be a winning position and that's when the fighting started often resulting in two "equal halves" of zero!
They soon learned.

Granny Laine I didn’t think it was possible to say equal halves two equal parts of a whole would be the same however I always think of the bigger halve being at the most the better halve Now I’m blethering

Well I'm still no clearer Elizabeth1
If half of 100 is fifty the other half has to be fifty, yes? That kind of explains it IMO

TBH I can’t see what’s wrong with ‘equal halves’.
They cut it in half, so that the halves are equal, or as equal as you can get with a pancake unless you’re somehow going to measure it to the nearest millimetre.

But no, you can’t have an equal halve - it’d be a half (equal to the other half).

You'd have to weigh each half of a pancake to make sure they were equal.
One half could be slightly thicker than the other.
Then add lemon juice, sugar and enjoy

Or - "he's got more sugar then me and now he's spilt the rest on the floor"

As a teacher, I can see exactly where Elizabeth is coming from. A half, by definition in maths, is two equal shares, equal being the important concept. If they are not two equal parts, they are techically not halves.
There is no need to qualify by saying equal halves.

Yes, of course, if one part weighed 30 gms and the other part 35 gms they would not be halves.

And by this time they are cold and unappetizing.

Callistemom it would seem that this fun activity was to divide a shape in to two equal halves. The teacher could have uses a piece of paper cut into a circle, but sharing a pancake was more fun.

I know, I wasn't being serious DoraMarr

Just imagining a class of 30 six year olds with their knives cutting up their pancakes.

And let loose with lemon juice and sugar.
Or jam
Or Nutella

Well, I have actually done this with a 30-strong class of five year olds- although we used scotch pancakes in maths ( we made pancakes earlier, in small groups. They chose their toppings.) tThe cutting into two equal halves was done in small groups too, with small knives, after reminding the children how to do it safely. The rest of the class worked on other activities. Most five year olds are very sensible and well behaved in school!

Who was going to clear up the mess? Fhat's more important. Happy memories of (over) active maths.
??

I hope the halves were indeed absolutely equal Doramarr and not 51.89% and 48.11% or else they could still be squabbling now.

Marydoll have you never seen five year olds scrambling to “help”? ?
I used to love thinking of ways to make maths and other subjects fun and relevant. As a very new teacher I made bread with my class. Each child had their own small mixing bowl, shared a set of balances and weights with three others, and measured, mixed, kneaded and left to prove over lunchtime. Afterwards they shaped their dough and took it to bake, and at home time everyone proudly took it home for tea. In the middle of the night I woke up with a start, remembering that I had instructed each child to add one teaspoonful of salt to their flour, when, of course, the recipe called for one teaspoon per kilo!

Been there, Dora. ?

I was once delivering a lesson on chemical changes, so decided we would make pizza from scratch, using yeast. The smell of cooking permeated the school and before I knew, the class was full of adults who just happened to be passing.
The bell rang and I was left to clear up the most awful mess!

Lemon and sugar for me, please!
Gdcs always want Nutella, so I have to buy the smallest jar possible, since whatever’s left over after their visit ends up being scoffed by Granny with a spoon. ?

In answer to your. Question ‘Can you have an equal half’ is no
A half is equal so you cannot have an unequal one it’s like saying can I have an equal equal
Half and equal are the SAME description

Rather like the River Avon
Which means River River