How to Explain Dividing Decimals by Whole Numbers

Dividing decimals by whole numbers becomes straightforward once you clearly understand what the decimal represents. Just as numbers increase by a base-10 order of magnitude to the left of a decimal, they decrease by the same order of magnitude to the right of the decimal. Any number can be multiplied by another number and then divided by that same number with no real effect on the original number. Understanding this concept is key to dividing decimals by whole numbers.

Instructions

    • 1

      Move the decimal place to the right until there are no more significant digits to the right of the decimal point. Keep track of the number of places that the decimal point was moved. Each place is a factor of 10, so if it was moved once, it is like the number was multiplied by 10. If it was moved twice, it is like the number was multiplied by one hundred, and so on. For example, to divide 0.35 by 7, first move the decimal place two places to the right, making it 35 divided by 7.

    • 2

      Divide the whole number that was to be divided into the decimal number into the new whole number that used to be a decimal. To continue with the example, 35 divided by 7 is 5.

    • 3

      Move the decimal point of the resulting solution to the left on the solution by the same number of places as was done in Step 1. This divides out the factors of 10 that were multiplied in initially. It may be that some zeros will need to be put in front of the calculated solution to get the decimal back to its original place. To finish the example, once the decimal point is moved back, the 5 now becomes 0.05 for the correct answer.

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