Primary 5 Fraction and Division Study Guide
Primary 5 fraction and division in four short steps: sharing less than one each, sharing more than one each, fractions as tenths or hundredths, and long division with rounding. Each step has something to tap, then worked examples and a five-question check.
Start here
How is a fraction the same as a division?
A fraction line means divided by.
When 4 things are shared equally among 5, each share is 4 ÷ 5. The same amount can be written as the fraction 4/5 and as the decimal 0.8. In the fraction, the number being shared is on top. This chapter moves between all three forms.
In this chapter, your child learns to:
- write a sharing as a division, then as a fraction;
- give a share bigger than 1 as a mixed number;
- change a fraction to tenths or hundredths, then to a decimal;
- divide to get a decimal, and correct it to the places asked.
Step 1
How to write a division as a fraction
What is being shared goes on top. When fewer things are shared equally among more people, each share is less than 1 whole. Cut every thing into as many equal parts as there are people, and give one part from each to every person. Each person ends with a fraction: the number being shared on top, the number of ways below.
Tap Next step
5 identical cakes are shared equally among 9 children. What fraction of a cake does each child get?
Step 2
Writing a division as a mixed number
Hand out wholes first, then cut what is left. When there are more things than people, each share is more than 1 whole. Write the division as a fraction, give it in its simplest form, then change the improper fraction to a mixed number when the question asks. The improper fraction and the mixed number are the same amount.
Tap Next step
Express 14 ÷ 4 as a mixed number in its simplest form.
Step 3
How to change a fraction to a decimal
Try a denominator of 10 or 100. A fraction is quick to write as a decimal when its denominator can become 10 or 100. Find what the denominator must be multiplied by, multiply the top and the bottom by that number, then read the tenths or hundredths as a decimal. For a mixed number, the whole number stays in front.
Tap Next step
Express 3 9/20 as a decimal.
Step 4
Fraction to decimal by long division, and rounding
Divide one place further, then look at the last digit. When the denominator cannot become 10 or 100, divide the top number by the bottom number. Add zeros after the decimal point and work to one more decimal place than the question asks for. If that last digit is 5 or more, the digit before it goes up by 1; if it is less than 5, the digit before it stays the same.
Tap Next step
Express 4/9 as a decimal, correct to 2 decimal places.
Primary 5 fraction and division questions, worked step by stepWrite your own working first. A hint gives a nudge, and each further tap shows the next line.
Express 8 ÷ 12 as a fraction in its simplest form.
- 8 ÷ 12 = 812
- 8 and 12 are both divisible by 4.
- 812 = 8 ÷ 412 ÷ 4 = 23
Mr Tan packed 20 kg of flour equally into 6 bags. What was the mass of flour in each bag? Give your answer as a mixed number in its simplest form.
- mass in each bag = 20 ÷ 6
- 20 ÷ 6 = 206
- 206 = 103
- 103 = 3 13 kg
Express 1325 as a decimal.
- 25 × 4 = 100
- 1325 = 13 × 425 × 4 = 52100
- 52100 = 0.52
Express 2 1140 as a decimal.
- 40 × 25 = 1000
- 1140 = 11 × 2540 × 25 = 2751000
- 2751000 = 0.275
- 2 1140 = 2 + 0.275 = 2.275
Aunty Rosnah poured 13 L of syrup equally into 7 bottles. How much syrup was in each bottle? Give your answer in litres, correct to 2 decimal places.
- syrup in each bottle = 13 ÷ 7
- 13 ÷ 7 = 1.857…
- third decimal digit = 7, which is 5 or more
- syrup in each bottle = 1.86 L (to 2 decimal places)
Step 5
Check yourself
Five quick questions on sharing, mixed numbers and decimals. Nothing is saved, and each reply points to the practice that fits.
1. 6 identical pies are shared equally among 7 children. What fraction of a pie does each child get?
2. Express 18 ÷ 5 as a mixed number.
3. Express 21/50 as a decimal.
4. Express 1/8 as a decimal.
5. Express 5/9 as a decimal, correct to 2 decimal places.
Using this guide at home. Have a few coins or paper strips ready, and let your child share them out before tapping Next step. Before each step, ask which number is being shared and how many ways it is shared. That decides which number goes on top, and it settles most of the first two steps.
For decimals, ask first whether the denominator can become 10 or 100. If it cannot, your child divides on paper, one decimal place further than asked, and then decides from the last digit. A quick size check helps too: a fraction less than 1 must give a decimal less than 1.
More study guides
P5 Fraction and Division lessons and practice
2 lesson videos and 30 questions across two subtopics, from Basic to Challenge, each with a worked solution.
Watch and practise →