- Equivalent fractions are equal even though they have a different denominator, the number on the bottom of the fraction. To get a visual image of this, draw two pictures of a whole pie. On the first pie, draw a line cutting the pie on half. Label each side 1/2. On the second pie, draw a line cutting the pie in half. Then draw another line dividing the pie into quarters. Label each section 1/4. Shade one half of the pie in each drawing. The sections are the same size, yet one section is 1/2 and the other section is 1/4 + 1/4, or 2/4. 2/4 and 1/2 are equivalent fractions.
- If a fraction is not in simple form, you can make an equivalent fraction by using division. With the fraction 6/12, it is possible to divide both the numerator and the denominator by the same number: 3. Six divided by three is two, so two is your new numerator. Twelve divided by three is four, so four is your new denominator. The new fraction is 2/4. Therefore, 6/12 and 2/4 are equivalent fractions. 6/12 is also divisible by six; that division gives you the new fraction of 1/2. Therefore, 6/12, 2/4, and 1/2 are all equivalent.
- You can also make an equivalent fraction by multiplying both the numerator and the denominator by the same number. Take the fraction 2/3 and multiply both numbers by four. 2 x 4 = 8. Eight is the new numerator. 3 x 4 = 12. Twelve is the new denominator. So 8/12 is equivalent to 2/3.
- If it's easy to do, draw a picture using a pie to compare fractions. This a good visual way to see if they're equivalent. If that isn't possible, make the denominators the same by using multiplication. Let's try it on 1/3 and 4/6. First we need to make the denominator of 1/3 into a 6, so we'll multiply both the one and the three by two. This turns the fraction into 2/6. 2/6 is not equal to 4/6, so we know that the two fractions are not equivalent.
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