Ms. Legume wants to use 1/3 of her garden for lettuce and 1/2 for beans.
What fraction of the garden does she have left for each of her carrots and her peas if they both are to get the same amount of space?
1/3 and 1/2 both need to be given common denominators. So 6 would be a common denominator of both 2 and 3. So multiply both the top and bottom of 1/2 by 3 to get 3/6 and multiply 1/3's top and bottom by 2 to get 2/6. Add 2 + 3 to get 5. Put it back in fraction form to get 5/6 is used for lettuce and beans. So 1/6 is left for carrots and peas. Each needs the same amount. So 1/12 for each. Since 1/12 is the same as if you do 0.5/6.