A piece of string is 5 5/8 inches long. How much should Lena cut off to make it 3 1/2 inches long?

5 5/8 - 3 1/2

= 5 - 3 = 2

= 2+5/8-1/2

=2+1/8

=2 1/8

2 1/8 inches

Step-by-step explanation:

First, we make the fractions into improper fractions:

5 5/8 = 45/8

3 1/2 = 7/2

Now we make them to have the same denominator

7/2 = 28/8

Now we substract

45/8 - 28/8 = 17/8

17/8 = 2 1/8 inches