finding areas of squares

Question

The rectangle is 3 ³⁄₄ centimeters long and 2 ¹⁄₂ centimeters wide. What is the area of this rectangle?

Answer 1

3 3/4 = 3.75

2 12/ = 2.5

3.75 x 2.5 = 9.375 square centimeters = the area

9.375 = 9 3/8 cm^2

or solve the problem by converting to improper fractions

3 3/4 = 15/4

2 1/2 = 5/2 = 10/4

15/4 x 5/2 = 75/8 = 9 3/8 cm^2