left over after finding how many

Question

what if u had 7 4/9 yards of material and each pair of shorts used 3/8 yards, how much is left over

Answer 1

Let's put both measures into fractions:   7 4/9=67/9

                                                           3/8=3/8

Now we need to find how many shorts can be made out of 67/9 yards of material. We do this by dividing 67/9 by 3/8 because each pair of shorts uses 3/8 of material:  

                                                          (67/9)/(3/8)

                                                          (67/9)(8/3)       dividing by a fraction is the same as multiplying by its' reciprocal

                                                          536/27             answer

                                                          19 23/27          19 pairs of shorts are made and 23/27 pf a pair can be made

If 1 pair of shorts uses 3/8 yards of material, then how much does 23/27 pair use?

                                                          1pair=3/8yards

                                                          23/27(1)=(3/8)(23/27)

                                                                       =69/216

                                                                       =23/72

Therefore, you will be able to make 19 pairs of shorts and have 23/72 yards of material left over.