Page 132 - Start Up Mathematics_6

7 Fractions

The word fraction is derived from the Latin word fractus which means broken. Our initial exposure
to fractions occurs much before the formal mathematical learning of the topic takes place. Common
phrases such as ‘one-fourth of a pizza,’ or ‘half of a chocolate’ are in fact fractions representing
1 5
part of a whole. Similarly, a teacher giving 2 i.e, marks out of 3 marks in a question is also
2 2
an example of use of fractions in daily life. Fraction can also represent part of a given collection
such as ‘one-third of the students in the class are boys’. So when we divide a whole thing or a
collection of things into equal parts, each part is called its fraction.
Now let’s see one more example.
Look at the table given below to know how Ali spends his day:

Activity In school At home Playing outdoor games Total
Hours spent 6 16 2 24
16 2
On the basis of the above example, we can say that Ali spends or of his time at home.
24 3
Hence, a fraction is a number representing a part of a whole. The whole may be a single object
or a group of objects.
Example 1: Write the fraction representing the shaded portion.

(a) (b) (c)

(d) (e) (f)

3 4 3 1 6 2
Solution: (a) (b) (c) (d) (e) (f)
4 8 8 12 6 8
Example 2: Colour the parts of the following figures representing the given fractions:

3 1 1
(a) (b) (c)
4 4 3