Equivalent fractions: same size, different names
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What you will learn
By the end, you can tell when two fractions are the same size and find the missing number in a pair like 2/3 = ?/12.
Noah cuts his pizza into 4 slices and eats 2. Sana cuts hers, the same size, into 8 slices and eats 4. “I ate more, I had four slices!” says Sana. Look at the plates: both ate exactly half.
Read the explanation
Equivalent fractions are the same amount with different names. 1/2, 2/4 and 4/8 all cover half of the shape. Multiply the top and the bottom by the same number and the fraction keeps its value; divide both by the same number and it does too.
- Whatever you do to the bottom, do to the top.
- Simplest form: divide top and bottom by the biggest number that goes into both (6/8 = 3/4).
- Check with a picture: the shaded parts should look the same size.