SOLUTION: I need some assistance with this word problem. A forester planted 5/12 of an acre of seedlings in the morning, and then 1/2 an acre in the afternoon. The next day deer ate 2/3

Algebra ->  Test -> SOLUTION: I need some assistance with this word problem. A forester planted 5/12 of an acre of seedlings in the morning, and then 1/2 an acre in the afternoon. The next day deer ate 2/3       Log On


   

Question 729039: I need some assistance with this word problem.
A forester planted 5/12 of an acre of seedlings in the morning, and then 1/2 an acre in the afternoon. The next day deer ate 2/3 of an acre of these seedlings. What fraction of an acre of seedlings remained?
Answer by ohtheirony(35) About Me  (Show Source):
You can put this solution on YOUR website!
If we add 5%2F12%2B1%2F2, we get the total for the day. We need to make the denominator equal 12 so we can add them together. The denominator is the bottom of the fraction. To get from 2 to 12, we multiply the 2 in one half by 6. We have to do the same to the top, so we get 6%2F12. 5%2F12%2B6%2F12=11%2F12. We only add the numerators in a fraction. The numerator is the top of the fraction. 11%2F12 is how many acres the forester planted in the first day.


Now we need the 2%2F3 to have a 12 denominator. If we multiply the numerator and denominator, we get 8%2F12.


To subtract fractions, we only subtract the numerator. So, 11%2F12-8%2F12=3%2F12. You can reduce this to 1%2F4 by dividing the numerator and denominator by 3.