Friday, March 24, 2006
Equivalent Fractions
If we multiply both the numerator and the denominator of a fraction by the same number, then we are not changing the value of the fraction. We are only changing the form that the fraction is in.
For example, if we multiply 1/2 by 2/2, we get 2/4.
2/4 is still the same amount as 1/2. This is illustrated in the picture below.
Say we want to convert 2/3 to an equivalent fraction with a denominator of 12.
We need to multiply 3 (the current denominator) by 4 to get 12.
Therefore, we will multiply 2/3 by 4/4 to get the fraction into the form that we need.
2/3 x 4/4 = 8/12
Remember that 8/12 is the same amount as 2/3; it is just written in a different way.
