Count how many parts there are in total (both shaded and unshaded) and write this as the denominator (bottom number) of the fraction.
Count how many shaded parts there are and write this as the numerator (top number) of the fraction.
You now have the fraction of the whole that is shaded.
2/5
whole number
a fraction
parts of a whole number
How ever many extra shaded parts there are, well, say one whole is 6/6, and you have 9 pieces, instead of 6/6 with 3 left over, it's 9/6. In math you would call it an improper fraction.
The Denominator
whole number
A whole
Draw as many rectangles as the whole number you are multiplying by. Then, draw the fraction you are multiplying by in all of the rectangles. Shade in the top number in the fraction [numerator] in your rectangles. Count all the shaded in parts of all your rectangles. Leave the bottom number of your fraction [denominator] the same and put the number you got when you added the shaded parts of the rectangles on top as your denominator of the fraction. That is your answer!
The top number tells how many of the pieces you're taking, after you've cut up the whole thing into the bottom number of pieces.
When the fraction is written in its simplest form, if necessary as an improper fraction, the denominator (the number at the bottom gives the number of parts in a whole.
a fraction
parts of a whole number
The number in a fraction that tells how many equal parts are in the whole or group is called the denominator. It is the bottom number of the fraction and represents the total number of equal parts that make up the whole.
If the fraction has been simplified then there is no such number.
It is a fraction of a number
How ever many extra shaded parts there are, well, say one whole is 6/6, and you have 9 pieces, instead of 6/6 with 3 left over, it's 9/6. In math you would call it an improper fraction.
denominator