Lay the 4 m plank as one bar and cut it into equal pieces of 2⁄3 m. The number of pieces is 4 ÷ 2⁄3.

4 m plank2/3 m2/3 m2/3 m2/3 m2/3 m2/3 m4 m

Plain numbers are given; italic underlined numbers are worked out.

  1. 4 ÷ 2⁄3 = 4 × 3⁄2
  2. 4 × 3⁄2 = 12⁄2 = 6

He can cut 6 planks.

Check: 6 × 2⁄3 m = 12⁄3 m = 4 m. ✓