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Fractions

What the two numbers mean

An over is 6 balls. You have bowled 2 balls. That is 2/6 of the over.

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The rule

A fraction is one number above another, with a line between.

Reading 3/8, one number at a time
PartIn 3/8What it tells you
Bottom (denominator)8The whole is cut into 8 equal parts
Top (numerator)3You took 3 of those parts
A ribbon cut into 8 equal parts.
Step 1 of 4
  1. A ribbon cut into 8 equal parts.
  2. Bottom number: 8 parts in the whole.
  3. Top number: 3 parts taken.
  4. The fraction is 3/8.

For the same whole, a bigger bottom number makes a smaller part. That is because more parts share the same whole.

Example

A 24 cm ribbon: half is 24 ÷ 2 = 12 cm. The cm means centimetres.

A 48 cm ribbon: half is 48 ÷ 2 = 24 cm.

Same fraction, different whole, so a different length.

Jump to lesson

This track

  1. 0 Start here
  2. 1 Fair parts, or no name at all
  3. 2 What the two numbers mean
  4. 3 A fraction has its own spot
  5. 4 One amount, many names
  6. 5 Which piece is more?
  7. 6 Adding pieces of one size
  8. 7 The big picture
  9. 8 Track quiz

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