Fraction Of Girls In A Class Math Problem Solved

Hey everyone! Let's dive into a fun math problem today. We've got a class of 20 students, and 12 of them are boys. The question is: what fraction of the students are girls? This is a classic example of a fraction problem that we can solve together step by step. So, let's put on our thinking caps and get started!

Understanding the Problem

First, let's really understand what the question is asking. We know the total number of students (20 students), and we know how many are boys (12 boys). What we need to find is the fraction that represents the girls in the class. To do this, we first need to figure out how many girls there are. Then, we can express this number as a fraction of the total number of students.

Fractions are a way of representing parts of a whole. In this case, the whole is the entire class of 20 students, and we want to know what part of that whole is made up of girls. Think of it like slicing a pizza: the whole pizza is the class, and each slice is a fraction of the class. The fraction we're looking for will have the number of girls as the top part (the numerator) and the total number of students as the bottom part (the denominator).

So, to reiterate, our main keywords here are fraction, girls, and total students. We need to combine these pieces of information to solve the problem. Let’s break it down further. We need to know how many girls there are. We can figure this out because we know the total number of students and the number of boys. The girls make up the rest of the class. Once we know the number of girls, we can write it as a fraction of the total students. This will give us the answer we're looking for. This might sound a bit complicated, but trust me, it’s quite straightforward once we go through the steps. Remember, math problems are often like puzzles; you just need to find the right pieces and put them together in the right way.

Finding the Number of Girls

Okay, so the first thing we need to figure out is the number of girls in the class. We know there are 20 students in total, and 12 of them are boys. To find the number of girls, we simply subtract the number of boys from the total number of students. This is because the total number of students is made up of both boys and girls. If we take away the boys, we're left with the girls. Simple, right?

So, the calculation looks like this: Total students – Number of boys = Number of girls. Plugging in the numbers we have: 20 – 12 = Number of girls. What does that give us? Yep, 20 minus 12 equals 8. So, there are 8 girls in the class. Now we know another key piece of our puzzle. We now know the number of girls, which is essential for finding the fraction. Remember, the fraction will represent the part of the class that is girls.

This step is crucial because we can't find the fraction of girls without knowing the actual number of girls. It's like trying to bake a cake without knowing how much flour you need. You have to have all the ingredients before you can put them together. And in this case, the number of girls is a critical ingredient. Now that we know there are 8 girls, we’re one step closer to solving the problem. This is a great example of how breaking a problem down into smaller parts can make it much easier to solve. We took a bigger question – finding the fraction – and turned it into a smaller, more manageable question – finding the number of girls. And now that we've found the number of girls, we can move on to the next step: expressing this as a fraction.

Expressing the Number of Girls as a Fraction

Now that we know there are 8 girls in the class, we can express this as a fraction of the total number of students. Remember, a fraction is a way of showing a part of a whole. In this case, the 'part' is the number of girls (8), and the 'whole' is the total number of students (20). To write this as a fraction, we put the number of girls on top (the numerator) and the total number of students on the bottom (the denominator). So, the fraction looks like this: 8/20. This fraction means that 8 out of 20 students are girls. We've now successfully expressed the number of girls as a fraction of the total students!

This fraction, 8/20, is the initial answer to our question. It tells us the proportion of girls in the class. However, in math, we often like to simplify fractions to their simplest form. This means finding the smallest possible numbers that represent the same proportion. Think of it like this: 8/20 is like saying