Fractions of amounts | Year 6 Mathematics PDF Download

Fractions in Daily Life

Utilizing fractions in real-world contexts involves working with fractions in practical situations using units such as money, weight, and length.

• Shops frequently offer deals like "1/3 extra free" or "1/2 price," necessitating mental calculations to determine the adjusted price or quantity.
• Time is often measured in fractions, for instance, "in three-quarters of an hour."
• When cooking or following recipes, measurements are often in fractions, such as "add 1/2 a teaspoon of salt."

Understanding Fractions with the Divide and Multiply Technique

• When dealing with fractions, a simple and effective method is to remember: 'Divide by the bottom... and multiply by the top!'
• This mnemonic helps you to divide the total amount by the denominator and then multiply the result by the numerator.

RUCSAC: A Tool for Solving Word Problems

• RUCSAC is a helpful strategy for solving word problems:
• READ the question carefully.
• UNDERLINE and UNDERSTAND key words.
• CHOOSE the correct operation (-, x, ÷) and method.
• SOLVE the problem!
• ANSWER the question.
• CHECK your working out.

Example: Now let’s look at some examples with word problems.
A TV programme lasts for one hour. Arthur misses 3/10 of the programme. How many minutes did he watch?
The question asks how many minutes he watched, not how many he missed.
So if we know he missed 3/10 of the hour, he must have watched 7/10.
What is 7/10 of 60 minutes (one hour)?
Divide by the bottom…
60 ÷ 10 = 6
Times by the top…
6 x 7 = 42
He must have watched 42 minutes of the TV programme.

Using Bar Models

Representing a problem using models or diagrams can be highly beneficial.
For instance, a bar model can effectively visualize word problems related to fractions.
Let's take a look at the question in the slideshow below from White Rose Maths

• The bar represents the weight of the cake, which totals 300g. It is divided into quarters, or 4 equal parts.
  
• Since 3/4 of the cake is eaten, we shade in this portion. The remaining 1/4 has not been eaten. With 4 equal parts, dividing 300 by 4 gives us the weight of each part. Therefore, 1/4 of the cake equals 75g.