How to Add Fractions: Examples and Steps
Adding fractions is a regular math problem that students study in school. It can seem intimidating initially, but it turns easy with a tiny bit of practice.
This blog post will walk you through the process of adding two or more fractions and adding mixed fractions. We will ,on top of that, give examples to see what must be done. Adding fractions is necessary for a lot of subjects as you advance in science and mathematics, so be sure to adopt these skills early!
The Steps of Adding Fractions
Adding fractions is an ability that many students have a problem with. Nevertheless, it is a moderately easy process once you understand the fundamental principles. There are three major steps to adding fractions: finding a common denominator, adding the numerators, and simplifying the results. Let’s carefully analyze every one of these steps, and then we’ll look into some examples.
Step 1: Look for a Common Denominator
With these helpful tips, you’ll be adding fractions like a professional in no time! The first step is to look for a common denominator for the two fractions you are adding. The least common denominator is the lowest number that both fractions will divide evenly.
If the fractions you want to add share the equal denominator, you can skip this step. If not, to find the common denominator, you can determine the amount of the factors of each number until you find a common one.
For example, let’s assume we wish to add the fractions 1/3 and 1/6. The lowest common denominator for these two fractions is six in view of the fact that both denominators will divide evenly into that number.
Here’s a great tip: if you are not sure about this process, you can multiply both denominators, and you will [[also|subsequently80] get a common denominator, which would be 18.
Step Two: Adding the Numerators
Once you acquired the common denominator, the following step is to turn each fraction so that it has that denominator.
To turn these into an equivalent fraction with an identical denominator, you will multiply both the denominator and numerator by the identical number needed to get the common denominator.
Following the last example, six will become the common denominator. To change the numerators, we will multiply 1/3 by 2 to achieve 2/6, while 1/6 would remain the same.
Now that both the fractions share common denominators, we can add the numerators together to get 3/6, a proper fraction that we will proceed to simplify.
Step Three: Simplifying the Answers
The final process is to simplify the fraction. Doing so means we are required to reduce the fraction to its minimum terms. To obtain this, we search for the most common factor of the numerator and denominator and divide them by it. In our example, the biggest common factor of 3 and 6 is 3. When we divide both numbers by 3, we get the ultimate result of 1/2.
You go by the exact procedure to add and subtract fractions.
Examples of How to Add Fractions
Now, let’s proceed to add these two fractions:
2/4 + 6/4
By applying the steps above, you will see that they share identical denominators. Lucky you, this means you can skip the initial step. Now, all you have to do is add the numerators and let it be the same denominator as before.
2/4 + 6/4 = 8/4
Now, let’s attempt to simplify the fraction. We can see that this is an improper fraction, as the numerator is higher than the denominator. This may suggest that you can simplify the fraction, but this is not necessarily the case with proper and improper fractions.
In this example, the numerator and denominator can be divided by 4, its most common denominator. You will get a final answer of 2 by dividing the numerator and denominator by 2.
Considering you follow these steps when dividing two or more fractions, you’ll be a professional at adding fractions in no time.
Adding Fractions with Unlike Denominators
This process will require an extra step when you add or subtract fractions with distinct denominators. To do this function with two or more fractions, they must have the identical denominator.
The Steps to Adding Fractions with Unlike Denominators
As we stated above, to add unlike fractions, you must obey all three procedures mentioned prior to convert these unlike denominators into equivalent fractions
Examples of How to Add Fractions with Unlike Denominators
At this point, we will focus on another example by adding the following fractions:
1/6+2/3+6/4
As shown, the denominators are dissimilar, and the least common multiple is 12. Therefore, we multiply every fraction by a number to get the denominator of 12.
1/6 * 2 = 2/12
2/3 * 4 = 8/12
6/4 * 3 = 18/12
Considering that all the fractions have a common denominator, we will proceed to total the numerators:
2/12 + 8/12 + 18/12 = 28/12
We simplify the fraction by dividing the numerator and denominator by 4, finding a final result of 7/3.
Adding Mixed Numbers
We have discussed like and unlike fractions, but presently we will touch upon mixed fractions. These are fractions followed by whole numbers.
The Steps to Adding Mixed Numbers
To solve addition exercises with mixed numbers, you must initiate by converting the mixed number into a fraction. Here are the procedures and keep reading for an example.
Step 1
Multiply the whole number by the numerator
Step 2
Add that number to the numerator.
Step 3
Write down your result as a numerator and retain the denominator.
Now, you go ahead by summing these unlike fractions as you generally would.
Examples of How to Add Mixed Numbers
As an example, we will solve 1 3/4 + 5/4.
Foremost, let’s convert the mixed number into a fraction. You will need to multiply the whole number by the denominator, which is 4. 1 = 4/4
Thereafter, add the whole number represented as a fraction to the other fraction in the mixed number.
4/4 + 3/4 = 7/4
You will conclude with this operation:
7/4 + 5/4
By summing the numerators with the same denominator, we will have a ultimate result of 12/4. We simplify the fraction by dividing both the numerator and denominator by 4, ensuing in 3 as a conclusive result.
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