🚧 Avoid common mistakes · 1 min read
Fraction traps to avoid
Never add the tops and the bottoms. Here's what to do instead.
Trap 1: adding tops and bottoms
12 + 13 is NOT 25. Change them to the same denominator first: 36 + 26 = 56.
Trap 2: dividing fractions
To divide, flip the second fraction and multiply: 34 ÷ 12 = 34 × 21 = 64 = 112.
Trap 3: cancelling across + signs
In x + 66 you cannot cancel the 6s, because the 6 on top is added, not multiplied. You can only cancel common factors.