Posted by Mary Mac on Friday, May 9, 2008 at 10:01am.

I have this fraction:

6 2/9 + 1 3/4 - 3 5/6=

Okay First I changed the mixed numbers into improper fractions. I got this:

56/9 + 7/4 + 23/6

Then I thought you have to find the least common denominator, which for 9,4, and 6 would be 36.

Then I muliplied the fractions by 4, 9, and 6 repectively, and got this equation:

224/36 + 161/36 - 138/36=

The answer I got was 23/36, but I know this is wrong. Looking at the steps I have taken, could someone tell me where I went wrong. I DO NOT WANT THE ANSWER. Just HOW to GET the right answer.
Thank you

Responses

Math/Fractions - PsyDAG, Friday, May 9, 2008 at 10:57am
7/4 = 63/36

There is your error.

I hope this helps. Thanksfor asking.

Math/Fractions - DrBpb222, Friday, May 9, 2008 at 11:02am
The 224/36 is correct.
The 138/36 is correct.
The 161/36 is not correct.
The LCD is 36, 36/4 = 9 and 9 x 7 = ?? and ??/36 is the fraction.
Thanks for showing your work. It helps us find the error much easier.

Okay, wouldnt 9x7 =63? I got 63/36.

Then I added 224/36 + 63/36 and I got

287/36- 138/36= 149/36 wich would revert to a mixed number of 4 5/36. It will not reduce. Is 4 5/36 correct?

yes.

Now, were told up across names. along we watched for kids as a sapling natural Forest. by themselves

years later. exploring even know then eventually I'd surprise

13/4 9/4 6/5 10/3 14/3

To solve this problem, you need to add the fractions correctly and simplify the final answer. Let's go through the steps:

Step 1: Convert the mixed numbers to improper fractions.
You correctly converted 6 2/9 to 56/9 and 1 3/4 to 7/4. However, there was an error in converting 3 5/6 to an improper fraction. It should be 23/6, not 63/36. Keep in mind that when converting mixed numbers to improper fractions, you only need to focus on the fractional part and keep the whole number as is.

Step 2: Find the least common denominator (LCD).
The LCD is the smallest multiple that all the denominators (9, 4, and 6) can evenly divide into. You correctly determined that the LCD is 36.

Step 3: Multiply each fraction by the necessary factor to make its denominator equal to the LCD.
You multiplied 56/9 by 4, 7/4 by 9, and 23/6 by 6. However, you made an error when multiplying 7/4 by 9. It should be 9/4 x 7 = 63/4, not 63/36. This mistake carried into your subsequent calculations.

Step 4: Add the fractions.
Now that all the fractions have a common denominator of 36, you can add them together:
56/9 + 63/4 + 23/6 = (56 x 4)/(9 x 4) + 63/4 + (23 x 6)/(6 x 6)
= 224/36 + 63/4 + 138/36

Step 5: Simplify the fractions.
To simplify the fractions, you can look for common factors in the numerators and denominators. In this case, 224 and 138 have a common factor of 2. Divide both numbers by 2 to simplify:
224/36 + 63/4 + 138/36 = (224/2)/(36/2) + 63/4 + (138/2)/(36/2)
= 112/18 + 63/4 + 69/18

Step 6: Find a common denominator and add the fractions.
The common denominator is 18, so you need to adjust the fractions accordingly:
112/18 + 63/4 + 69/18 = (112/18) x (2/2) + (63/4) x (4/4) + (69/18) x (1/1)
= 224/36 + 252/36 + 69/18

Step 7: Add the numerators and keep the denominator.
Now you can add the fractions together:
224/36 + 252/36 + 69/18 = (224 + 252 + 69)/36
= 545/36

Step 8: Simplify the fraction, if possible.
To simplify the fraction, check if the numerator and denominator have any common factors. In this case, they do not have any common factors other than 1. Therefore, the fraction 545/36 cannot be simplified further.

So, the final answer is 545/36. It is not correct to simply revert it to a mixed number (4 5/36) since the question asks for the answer as a fraction.