How do you compare each pair of fractions with <, > or = given #3/8, 2/5#?

1 Answer

#3/8<2/5#

Explanation:

I remember the < and > signs with what a teacher once told me - think of them as a fish's mouth. It can only eat once and it wants to eat as much as possible, so the open end will "eat" the bigger amount.

So which is bigger, #3/8 or 2/5#?

One way to do this is to find a common denominator (it's 40), so let's convert the fractions:

#3/8(1) or 2/5(1)#

#3/8(5/5) or 2/5(8/8)#

#15/40 or 16/40#

#:. 15/40<16/40=>3/8<2/5#