Fractions, one slice at a time

A fraction describes equal parts of a whole.

The denominator tells us how many equal parts there are. The numerator tells us how many parts we mean. In 3/4, the whole has four equal parts and we mean three of them.

Example: divide 12 orange slices into 4 equal groups. Each group has 3 slices, so one-quarter of 12 is 3.

Your turn: what is one-half of 10? What is one-quarter of 16?

Check: 5 and 4. Explain how you found each answer.