Fractions

• A fraction is a number that is written in the form:

or a/b

• The a is the numerator, and the b is the denominator.
• The line separating the numerator and denominator is a fraction bar.
• Fractions are used when representing numbers that describe the parts of a whole. The fraction a/b also can be read as "a out of b" ,"a over b" or "a divided by b."

There are some restrictions on a and b:

• Both a and b must be integers, meaning positive and negative whole numbers. 
• The denominator, or b, cannot be zero. This is because one cannot divide by zero.

Example:
If there are 18 students in a classroom, and 6 of the students wear glasses, what fraction of the students wear glasses?

 

• A fraction can be thought of as "a out of b." 
• Total number of students is 18. 
• Number of students with glasses is 6.
• Number of students with glasses out of the whole class is 6/18.