How_To_Be_Good_At_Math

42 NUMBERS •^ IMPROPER FRACTIONS AND MIXED NUMBERS

Mixed numbers

A mixed number

is a whole number

together with a

proper fraction.

It’s another way

of writing an

improper fraction.

Improper fractions

and mixed numbers

Fractions aren’t always less than a whole. When we want to

show that the number of parts is greater than a whole, we

can write the result as an improper fraction or mixed number.

We write it like this: 2^1 / 2.

This mixed number is equal

to the improper fraction^5 / 2 :

If we put our pizza halves together, we

can make two whole pizzas, with one

half left over. So, we can also describe the

amount of pizza as “two wholes and one

half”, or “two and a half”.

Look at these five pieces of pizza. We can see

that each piece is half of a whole pizza, so we

can say that we have five lots of half a pizza.

Improper fractions

In an improper fraction, the numerator is larger than the denominator.

This tells us that the parts make up more than one whole. There are

five parts

Whole number

Proper

fraction

Each part is^1 / 2

of a whole

=

=

5

2

1

2

2

We write this as the fraction^5 / 2. This means

that we have five parts, and each part is one

half (^1 / 2 ) of a whole.

Improper fractions and

mixed numbers are two

different ways of describing

the same amount.

1

2

2 =

5

2

1

2

1

2

1

2

1

2

1

2

1

2

1

2

1

2

1

2

1

2

042_043_Improper_fractions.indd 42 29/02/2016 14:22