These 5th grade adding and subtracting fractions worksheets are generated rather than scanned, which means you can print a different sheet every day of the week without paying for a subscription or running out of practice. The current sheet starts with problems like 5/9 + 4/8 and 4/5 − 1/7, and the answers (19/18 and 23/35) are printed on the key so marking takes about a minute.
‘New set of problems’ opens the generator in its own tab. There you can change the problem count and turn the answer key on or off. ‘Print or save as PDF’ opens the print dialog — choose Save as PDF in the printer list to keep the file. The sheet fits US Letter and A4, and the answer key prints on its own page.
Adding fractions with different denominators is the first arithmetic that requires a preparation step. Before 5/9 + 4/8 can be added at all, the two fractions have to be rewritten over a common denominator — only then does 19/18 appear.
Every step is visible on the page: rewrite, add, simplify. Children who try to do the rewriting in their heads make far more errors than those who write both new fractions down.
The common denominator does not have to be the lowest one. Multiplying the two denominators always works, and with unlike denominators from 2 to 9 the extra simplification at the end is a small price for a method that never fails, which is why a line such as 1/3 + 3/5 turns up.
This is the topic where fraction work either clicks or collapses, and the deciding factor is usually whether equivalent fractions are secure.
In US classrooms these 5th grade adding and subtracting fractions worksheets are commonly aligned with the fractions strand for grade 5, though the exact wording varies from state to state.
| # | Problem | Answer | What to check |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 5/9 + 4/8 = | 19/18 | Watch for: using the product when a much smaller common denominator exists |
| 2 | 4/5 − 1/7 = | 23/35 | Check: multiplying only one fraction up |
| 3 | 3/6 + 1/2 = | 1 | Look at: subtracting the larger numerator from the smaller after conversion |
| 4 | 3/6 − 1/8 = | 3/8 | Ask about: adding numerators and denominators straight across |
| 5 | 1/3 + 3/5 = | 14/15 | Watch for: stopping before simplifying |
| 6 | 1/3 − 1/7 = | 4/21 | Check: finding a common denominator but forgetting the numerators |
Try 3/6 + 1/2 together before letting the child start alone. The answer to 3/6 + 1/2 is 1, and talking through how it was reached takes about a minute and saves several minutes of guessing later in the sheet.
Take the first problem on the sheet as it stands, 5/9 + 4/8. Work 5/9 + 4/8 out on paper rather than in your head the first few times, say each step aloud, and check the result against 19/18 on the key before moving on.
The answer key is generated with the worksheet, not written by hand, so it always matches the sheet in front of you — 5/9 + 4/8 is listed as 19/18, 4/5 − 1/7 as 23/35, and so on down the page.
The key prints on its own page by default. Uncheck the answer-key box before printing if you would rather keep it back and mark the sheet yourself.
Portrait orientation is what the sheet is designed for. Landscape works but wastes about a third of the paper, so leave the orientation alone unless you have a reason.
If the problems look cramped, drop the count from 20 to a smaller number before printing these 5th grade adding and subtracting fractions worksheets; the font stays the same size and the spacing opens up.
When these become easy, move along the related links below rather than adding more problems to the same sheet.
→ Free 5th Grade Math Worksheets · → Free Fractions Worksheets
Free printable math worksheets from a working math academy director in Korea. Problems come from our own code, not from a published workbook. Every sheet prints on US Letter or A4 with its answer key. All worksheets · Worksheet generator · Korean site
Last updated: 2026-09-13