Question

Nadine walked 1⁄4 of a mile, Janet walked 3⁄8 of a mile, and Perry walked 5⁄6 of a mile. Who walked the farthest? How much farther did Perry walk than Nadine?

Answer 1

To compare, we will change all to the same denominators:

$\text {Nadine =} \dfrac{1}{4} = \dfrac{6}{24} \text { miles}$

$\text {Janet =} \dfrac{3}{8} = \dfrac{9}{24} \text { miles}$

$\text {Perry =} \dfrac{5}{6} = \dfrac{20}{24} \text { miles}$

Perry walked the furthest.

$\dfrac{20}{24} - \dfrac{6}{24} = \dfrac{14}{24} = \dfrac{7}{12}$

Perry walked 7/12 miles more than Nadine.

Answer 2

Convert the unlike fractions. the LCD is 24
1*6/4*6 = 6/24,    3*3/8*3 = 9/24,    5*4/6*4 = 20/24
Compare the three fractions. The largest is 20/24, so Perry walked the farthest.

Subtract Nadine's distance from Perry's distance to find out how much farther Perry walked than Nadine
20/24 - 6/24 = 14/24 mile
14 divided by 2/ 24 divided by 2 = 7/12 mile
Perry walked 7/12 mile farther than Nadine.