Naina says half (1/2) a chocolate is always more than a quarter (1/4) of a chocolate, because 1/2…
Naina says half (1/2) a chocolate is always more than a quarter (1/4) of a chocolate, because 1/2 is a bigger fraction. Her friend says it depends on how big the chocolate is. Who is right?
Who do you think is right? Pick one.
The answer: Her friend is right, 1/2 and 1/4 are proportions — you first need to know of WHAT
Why
Naina has correctly spotted that 1/2 is a bigger fraction than 1/4 — that part is not in question. What she has skipped is that a fraction on its own is not an amount; it is a proportion, and it only becomes an amount once you know what it is a fraction OF. Half of a small thing can easily be less than a quarter of a large thing. Test it: half of a 4-square chocolate bar is 2 squares; a quarter of a 12-square family bar is 3 squares — the quarter of the big bar is more chocolate, even though 1/4 is the 'smaller' fraction. Her friend is right: 1/2 and 1/4 are proportions, and which represents more depends on the size of the whole each one is taken from — a fraction needs a 'whole' before it means an amount.
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