Week 4 of 8
Week 4
4th Grade → 5th Grade · Fractions add sub and Reading comprehension
Math
Adding and Subtracting Fractions
Adding or subtracting fractions that already have the same bottom number: the bottom stays and only the tops change. Fourth grade.
The mistake to watch for. Adding the bottom numbers too, so that 3/8 + 2/8 becomes 5/16. The pieces are eighths and they stay eighths.
How to help. Say the unit: three eighths plus two eighths is five eighths, just like three apples plus two apples is five apples.
A worked example
3/8 + 2/8 = ___. The pieces are the same size (eighths), so add the tops and keep the bottom: 3 + 2 = 5, so 5/8. For subtraction, 7/8 − 4/8 = 3/8.
All adding and subtracting fractions sets, with answer keys →
Words for this week
- fraction
- A number that names equal parts of a whole, like 3/4.
- numerator
- The top number in a fraction. It tells how many parts we mean.
- denominator
- The bottom number in a fraction. It tells how many equal parts the whole is cut into.
- add
- To put numbers together to find how many in all.
- subtract
- To take one number away from another to find how many are left.
Read this week
Allosaurus
A short dinosaurs & fossils article from our Learn library, chosen for this reading level. Read it together, then ask your child to tell you one new thing they learned.