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Lesson overview

Number - fractions

A unit fraction has a numerator of 1, such as $\frac{1}{4}$ or $\frac{1}{5}$ . A non-unit fraction has a numerator greater than 1, such as $\frac{3}{4}$ or $\frac{2}{5}$ . Fractions can be placed on a number line because they are numbers.

Unit fractions

$\frac{1}{2}$ , $\frac{1}{3}$ and $\frac{1}{4}$ are all unit fractions.

The numerator is 1 in each case.

Non-unit fractions

$\frac{2}{3}$ and $\frac{3}{4}$ are non-unit fractions.

The numerator is greater than 1.

Fractions on a line

Fractions can be placed between 0 and 1 on a number line.

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Fractions are numbers, not only parts of shapes.

Worked example

Is $\frac{3}{5}$ a unit fraction or a non-unit fraction?

Look at the numerator.
The numerator is 3.
A unit fraction must have a numerator of 1.
So $\frac{3}{5}$ is a non-unit fraction.

Try it

Check the numerator first to decide the kind of fraction.

Question 1

Which is a unit fraction?

Question 2

Which is a non-unit fraction?

Question 3

Write the numerator of $\frac{4}{7}$ .

Question 4

What kind of fraction is $\frac{1}{4}$ ?

Question 5

Which statement is true?

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Common mistakes

Watch for these when working through the lesson.

Thinking every small fraction is a unit fraction.
Looking only at the denominator.
Forgetting that fractions can be numbers on a line.

Recognise and use fractions as numbers: unit fractions and non-unit fractions with small denominators

Lesson overview

Worked example

Try it

Common mistakes

Related topics

Keep practising this idea