Fractions - Adding and Subtracting

Fractions - Adding and Subtracting

Fractions represent parts of a whole. They can be compared and manipulated using several techniques, including addition and subtraction. These operations involve combining two or more fractions with the same denominator or finding the difference between two fractions, respectively.

Adding Fractions

Addition involves equal division of two equal parts. When you add fractions, you combine the numerators and leave the denominator as it is, provided that they have different denominators. Therefore, when adding fractions, you need to find an equivalent fraction of each fraction with the same denominator. For instance, if we add (\frac{1}{3}) and (\frac{2}{3}), we can find an equivalent fraction of each with the same denominator, resulting in [\frac{1}{3}+\frac{2}{3}=\frac{3}{3}=1]

Subtracting Fractions

Subtraction works similarly to addition but involves the inverse operation. When subtracting fractions, you also need to ensure that they have different denominators. If one fraction is smaller than the other, you can combine them by converting them into equivalent fractions with the same denominator. For example, if we subtract (\frac{1}{3}) from (\frac{2}{3}), we can convert (\frac{2}{3}-\frac{1}{3}=\frac{1}{3}). Alternatively, you could write it as (1-\frac{1}{3}=\frac{2}{3}). In this case, both ways of writing result in the same fraction.

Learn how to add and subtract fractions by combining numerators and keeping the denominator constant. Find equivalent fractions with the same denominator to perform these operations effectively.