These questions come from the activity above. You can read them and work on paper before playing. Read the instruction and choices first, then look at the answer.
1/4 + 2/4? Choices : 3/4 / 2/4 / 3/8
Answer : 3/4
2/5 + 2/5? Choices : 0/5 / 4/10 / 4/5
Answer : 4/5
2/4 − 1/4? Choices : 3/4 / 1/8 / 1/4
Answer : 1/4
Helping your child think it through
Ask your child to explain their choice. For a calculation, use objects, a drawing or a written operation; for a word, read the complete sentence again. If they are unsure, work through one question together before continuing. Stars show successful answers, not a school assessment.
5th grade fraction worksheets to print (CM2, ages 10–11)
Ten fraction exercises for CM2, the last year of French primary school (about 5th grade), from easiest to hardest, with a full answer key: reading and writing fractions, comparing them, finding equal fractions, adding, working out a fraction of a quantity and switching to decimals. Above, 9 interactive exercises on adding fractions with the same denominator, with Gauvain the knight.
Print them or do them on a notebook page. They go from easiest to hardest and also work as a short test before a quiz: one or two per session is plenty for practice.
Write in numbers: three quarters, five eighths, seven tenths.
A pizza is cut into 8 equal slices. Lea eats 3. What fraction of the pizza did she eat? What fraction is left?
Put in order from smallest to largest: 7/5; 2/5; 5/5; 4/5. Which ones are greater than 1?
Fill in to make equal fractions: 1/2 = …/8; 3/4 = …/12; 2/5 = …/10.
Write each fraction in its simplest form: 6/8; 10/15; 12/16.
Work out: 2/7 + 3/7; 5/9 + 4/9; 7/10 − 3/10.
Write as “a whole number + a fraction less than 1”: 7/4; 13/5.
What is 3/4 of 20 stickers? And 2/5 of 35 marbles?
Write as a decimal: 7/10; 45/100; 128/100.
Tom is reading a book of 150 pages. On Monday he reads 2/5 of it; on Tuesday, 1/5. What fraction of the book has he read? How many pages are left?
3/4; 5/8; 7/10. The bottom number (the denominator) tells how many equal parts the whole is split into: quarters = 4, eighths = 8, tenths = 10.
3/8 eaten; 5/8 left. 8 slices in all, 3 taken: 3/8. 8 − 3 = 5 slices are left: 5/8.
2/5 < 4/5 < 5/5 < 7/5; only 7/5 is greater than 1. Same denominator: compare the numerators. 5/5 = 1, so 7/5 is greater than 1.
4/8; 9/12; 4/10. Multiply the top and the bottom by the same number: × 4, × 3, × 2.
3/4; 2/3; 3/4. Divide the top and the bottom by the same number: ÷ 2, ÷ 5, ÷ 4.
5/7; 9/9 = 1; 4/10. Same denominator: add (or subtract) the numerators and keep the denominator.
7/4 = 1 + 3/4; 13/5 = 2 + 3/5. 7/4 holds one 4/4 (= 1) with 3/4 left over. 13/5 holds two 5/5 (= 2) with 3/5 left over.
15 stickers; 14 marbles. Divide by the denominator, then multiply by the numerator: 20 ÷ 4 = 5, 5 × 3 = 15; 35 ÷ 5 = 7, 7 × 2 = 14.
0.7; 0.45; 1.28. Tenths: one digit after the decimal point; hundredths: two digits after the decimal point.
3/5 of the book; 60 pages are left. 2/5 + 1/5 = 3/5. One fifth is 150 ÷ 5 = 30 pages; 2/5 are left, so 2 × 30 = 60 pages.
Fractions in CM2: the 6 rules to know
Reading a fraction: the denominator, at the bottom, tells how many equal parts the whole is split into; the numerator, at the top, tells how many parts you take. 3/4 reads “three quarters”: 3 parts out of 4.
Comparing: when the denominators are the same, the largest fraction is the one with the largest numerator. A fraction is greater than 1 when its numerator is bigger than its denominator: 7/5 > 1.
Finding equal fractions: multiply, or divide, the numerator and the denominator by the same number: 1/2 = 2/4 = 4/8, and 6/8 = 3/4.
Adding or subtracting: if the denominators are the same, add (or subtract) the numerators and keep the denominator: 2/7 + 3/7 = 5/7. If they are different, make them the same first: 1/2 + 1/4 = 2/4 + 1/4 = 3/4; in France, this case mostly comes in middle school.
Finding a fraction of a quantity: divide the quantity by the denominator, then multiply by the numerator: 3/4 of 20 = (20 ÷ 4) × 3 = 15.
Switching to decimals: a decimal fraction has 10, 100 or 1,000 as its denominator: 7/10 = 0.7 and 45/100 = 0.45.
How to help your child with fractions
Draw first: a bar or a pizza split into equal parts makes the fraction visible before any calculation.
Say the fraction out loud: “three quarters”, “five eighths”: the word gives away the denominator.
Check the denominators: before adding, make sure they are the same; if not, look for an equal fraction.
Use common sense: 3/4 of 20 must be smaller than 20; two fractions smaller than 1 can add up to more than 1.
Filoumi tipTo stop mixing them up: the Denominator is Down below and tells how many parts the whole is Divided into. The Numerator, on top, gives the Number of parts you take.
Parents' questions about fractions in CM2
Which fraction topics are covered in CM2?
Reading and writing fractions, comparing them and placing them between two whole numbers, recognising equal fractions, adding and subtracting fractions with the same denominator, finding a fraction of a quantity, and turning a decimal fraction into a decimal. The 10 exercises on this page follow that order.
How do you add fractions in CM2?
When the denominators are the same, add the numerators and keep the denominator: 2/7 + 3/7 = 5/7. The denominator is never added: it is the size of the parts, and it does not change. Fractions with different denominators come in middle school.
My child doesn't understand fractions: what can I do?
Go back to real objects before the worksheets: cut a pizza, a chocolate bar or a strip of paper into equal parts, then name what you take (“three parts out of eight is 3/8”). Ten minutes of hands-on work beats a page of sums.
Do the exercises come with answers?
Yes: the answer key is below the exercises (click “Show the answer key”) and on page 2 of the PDF, with a short explanation for each answer.
