Decimals and Fractions

A decimal number system is used to express the whole number and fraction together. Here, we will separate the whole number from the fraction by inserting a “.”, which is called a decimal point. And a fraction represents a value in the form of a/b. There is a close relationship between decimals and fractions. To convert any decimal number to a fraction, we ignore the decimal point and divide the number by the place value of the last digit in the fractional part of the number. Then we simplify the fraction so obtained. The decimals and fractions can be conveniently interchanged to each other.

The decimals and fractions vary in the format in which they are written. A decimal of 3.24 is written in the form of a fraction of 324/100. In this mini-lesson, we will explore the relationship between decimals and fractions, and understand how to convert a decimal to a fraction.

What are Decimals?

Decimals are a set of numbers written together with a dot in between them that is called a decimal point. The numbers to the left of the decimal point are the integers or whole numbers and the numbers to the right of the decimal point are called decimal numbers. It is very important to understand place value while dealing with comparing decimals, operations on decimals, etc.

• A fraction is either a proper fraction or an improper fraction.
• A proper fraction is a number representing a part of a whole. This whole may be a single object or a group of objects. An improper fraction is a number in which numerator is greater than denominator.
• A mixed fraction is a combination of a natural number and a proper fraction.
• Two fractions are multiplied by multiplying their numerators and denominators separately and writing the product as product of numerators product of denominators