Fractions Branching
Reese made candles and pins. of the items were candles. She sold of the candles and 84 pins, and of the items were left. How many pins did she make at first?
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The pattern behind it: Branching
The second fraction is of one piece, not of the whole.
In this one. Every piece has to be re-expressed as a fraction of the same whole before it can be added or subtracted — "2/9 of the candles" is only usable once you multiply along the branch and turn it into "1/12 of all the items".
How to spot it
A second fraction arrives after the first and is attached to a piece rather than to the whole — 'of the remainder', 'of what was left', or 'of the ones that were red'.
Common mistake
Children take the second fraction of the original total instead of the piece it was named against, which makes the amount come out too big.
Try one like it
Standard A dress and a handbag — Mei's savings Mei spent $48 on a dress. This was 3/8 of her savings. After buying the dress, she spent 1/5 of the remaining savings on a handbag…The 33 problem patterns
All 33 patterns, one to a page — the 19 behind Primary 5 and 6 word problems, and the skills the younger years are built on. The bar model, how to spot it in the question, and the mistake children make. A booklet you can print. Free.
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