Rocket sprawls on the kitchen floor with a tape measure. "Ratios are only for paint and lemonade, right?"
Raven points at the bike by the door. "Two wheels for every one bike. That is a ratio."
"Four legs for every chair," Rocket says, sitting up. "Eight legs for two chairs!"
Nova circles the room, her light flicking from object to object. "Keep going. What do you notice about the windows and doors?"
"Three windows, one door. 3:1," Rocket says. "Same as the lemonade."
Raven writes it all in the log. "Ratios were here the whole time. We just started counting."
A ratio shows up any time two quantities go together: wheels and bikes, legs and chairs, steps and breaths.
A recipe is a set of ratios. A map scale is a ratio. The beat of a song compares counts to seconds.
When you spot two things that come in a fixed pattern, you have found a ratio.
| Statement | True or false? |
|---|---|
| 2:1 is the same ratio as 8:4. | ? |
| 4:1 is the same ratio as 12:3. | ? |
| 2:3 is the same ratio as 6:9. | ? |
| 2:3 is the same ratio as 4:5. | ? |
| The ratio 3:1 and the ratio 1:3 mean the same thing. | ? |
Next week the crew times runs for Field Day. A run compares meters to seconds, two quantities with different units.
A ratio with different units is called a rate. Speed is a rate, and you already know how to scale it.
A full week of ratios. Next week the crew times runs and turns ratios into rates and speed.