Same What is a ratio table?
A ratio table lists pairs of numbers that keep the same ratio, like a recipe scaled up. If 1 cup of flour makes 6 cookies, the table shows 2 cups make 12 and 5 cups make 30.
- Every column is the same recipe, just scaled.
- Multiply or divide both rows by the same number.
- From 1 and 6, times 5: 5 cups make 30 cookies
Why schools teach it
It turns ratio problems into patterns
Sixth graders are expected to make tables of equivalent ratios, find missing values, and plot the pairs on a graph (6.RP.A.3a). The table keeps both quantities side by side, so kids can see the relationship instead of guessing which numbers to multiply.
It also grows into unit rates (how many per 1) and, later, proportions and slope. The "×5 on both rows" move is the same idea as equivalent fractions.
At the kitchen table
What to say, and what to skip
Say this
What did you multiply by to get from this column to that one?
Did you do the same thing to both rows?
That's the rule that keeps the ratio the same.Can you find the column for 1?
That's the unit rate: how many cookies per cup.Could you add two columns together?
2 cups + 3 cups = 5 cups, and 12 + 18 = 30. Adding columns also works.
Skip this
Just cross-multiply.
Cross-multiplying comes later. The table shows why proportions work.- Adding the same number to both rows.1 and 6, plus 2 each, gives 3 and 8, which is a different ratio. Multiply, don't add.
- Expecting columns to go up by 1.Tables often jump: 1, 2, 5, 10. Any multiple works.
See it in action
Finding a missing value
4 tickets cost $10. How much do 6 tickets cost?
Halve both rows to find 2 tickets
2 tickets cost $5Add a column of 4 and a column of 2
4 + 2 = 6 ticketsAdd the costs the same way
$10 + $5 = $15
Halving and adding columns avoids messy division, which is why teachers like ratio tables.
Free practice sheet
Make a ratio table sheet
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Parents also ask
How is a ratio table different from a regular table?
Every column has the same ratio, so the numbers follow a multiplying pattern.
Do the columns have to be in order?
No, but ordered columns make patterns easier to see.
What's a unit rate?
The value for 1 of something, like $2.50 per ticket. It's the most useful column in the table.
How does this relate to the double number line?
Same pairs of numbers, drawn as two lined-up number lines instead of a table.