Ratios for Kids: Compare, Simplify and Find Unit Rates (Grade 6 Math)

Hi, I'm Luna from DoodleBeez. Today we are learning about ratios. A ratio compares two amounts. It tells us how much of one thing there is for every amount of another thing.

Look at this bowl of fruit. There are three apples and two bananas. The ratio of apples to bananas is three to two. We can write it with a colon, with the word to, or as a fraction.

Order matters! Apples to bananas is three to two, but bananas to apples is two to three. We can also compare a part to the whole. Apples to all the fruit is three to five.

Ratios can grow, just like equivalent fractions. A recipe uses two cups of flour for every one cup of milk. For a double batch, use four cups of flour and two cups of milk. Multiply both numbers by the same amount.

We can also simplify a ratio by dividing both numbers by the same amount. Twelve to eight: both divide by four. Twelve divided by four is three, and eight divided by four is two. So twelve to eight simplifies to three to two.

A unit rate tells us how much for just one. If a car travels one hundred twenty kilometers in two hours, divide both numbers by two. That is sixty kilometers in one hour, or sixty kilometers per hour.

Now it's your turn. A class has fifteen girls and ten boys. What is the ratio of girls to boys in simplest form? Pause and try. Divide both by five. Fifteen to ten simplifies to three to two.

Great job! Remember, a ratio compares two amounts, order matters, and you multiply or divide both numbers by the same amount to find equal ratios. Practice ratios in Middle School Math at doodlebeez.com. See you next time!