Using Decimals

Review of comparing,
rounding, adding &
subtracting, multiplying &
dividing decimals
created by Alane Tentoni (copyright 2007)
tentoni.weebly.com
 What is a decimal?

A decimal is a dot
that goes after the
ones column.

It separates the
whole numbers
from the partial
numbers.
About Decimals
 Decimals as
we know
them were
first used by
John Napier
in the late
1500s in
Scotland.
 About Decimals
In order to use decimals, you have
to understand place value.
1234.5678
th

hu an

on
te re
o

nd ds

es
ns ds
us

To the left of the decimal, all the numbers

are whole numbers. Each column is worth
ten times the column to its right.
About Decimals
 To the right of the decimal, all the
numbers are like fractions. Each
column is still worth 10 of the
column to the right.
1234.5678
Te sa hs
hu hs
te

th re

n
nt

nd
ou dt

th
ou s
nd

sa
th

nd
th
s
Reading Decimals
 Zeroes that come at the end of a
decimal don’t add or take away any
value.

 .4 = .40 = .400  This is like saying

“four tenths” = “four tenths and no
hundredths” = “four tenths and no
hundredths and no thousandths.”
Reading Decimals
 HOWEVER – Zeroes that come
between the decimal and the other
numbers are VERY important!

 .4 is “four tenths” but .04 is “four

hundredths.” Would you rather have
four dimes or four cents?
 Comparing Decimals
 To tell if one decimal is
bigger than another,
you have to compare the
same column in both
numbers.
 The length of the
number does NOT
matter at all!!!!
 Comparing Decimals
Compare these two numbers:
Which is larger?

.6 or .599823

All you need to do is look at the tenths

column. 6 is more than 5, so .6 is
more than .599823, even though
.599823 has more digits!
Comparing Decimals
Another comparison

Which is larger? .457 or .49?

The tenth columns are the same

(both 4), but the hundredths
columns are different. 9 is more
than 5, so .49 is more than .457.
 Rounding Decimals
 Rounding means cutting off
unnecessary digits.

 Why would you use fewer digits

than you know? Sometimes it is
more convenient to give an
approximate answer.
 Rounding Decimals
First, decide how many decimal places
you want in your answer.

Just throw away everything behind that

place. . .

Except! You will have to decide

whether to increase the last digit or
leave it alone.
 Rounding Decimals
Let’s round .576 to the nearest hundredth.

.576 is somewhere between .57 and .58.

Which one is it closer to?

To decide, simply look at the digit after the

hundredths place. Is it 5 or more? If so,
round up. If not, leave it the same.
Rounding Decimals
 In our case, 6 is more than 5, so
.576 should be rounded up to .58.

 What happens if you have a

number like .398 to round to the
nearest hundredth? (answer: .398
~.40)
 Rounding Decimals
 Be Careful!! Don’t
just replace the
“chopped off”
numbers with zeroes!
When you round, you
are really reducing
the number of digits
behind the decimal!
 Rounding Decimals
Here are some numbers to round to
the nearest hundredth.
Because we are rounding to
the nearest hundredth, each of
1.3247  1.32the numbers ends up with two
digits behind the decimal.
0.987  0.99What if we had been rounding
4.89721  4.90to the nearest tenth?

(answer: Rounding to the nearest tenth leaves one decimal place.

In the example: 1.3, 1.0, 4.9)
Adding & Subtracting
Decimals
 When you add decimals, line the
decimals up – one on top of the
other.

 You have to add the tenths to the

tenths, the hundredths to the
hundredths, and so on – just as when
you add whole numbers, you add
ones to ones and tens to tens.
Subtracting Decimals
 When you subtract, you may have
to annex zeroes to the larger
number so you can borrow.
 Example: 35.7 – 20.94= ?
35.70 Annex a zero here
- 20.94 so you can borrow.

14.76
 Multiplying Decimals

When you multiply

decimals, you should
set the problem up
just as if you were
multiplying whole
numbers – longest
number on top,
shortest on bottom.
Multiplying Decimals
 After you multiply the numbers,
you are ready to put your decimal
in place.
 Count the number of digits behind
the decimal in both of the
multiplied numbers.
 Put that many total digits behind
the decimal in your answer.
Multiplying Decimals
 Here’s an example:

1.2  one digit here

x 3.9  one digit here
108
_36_
4.68  two digits here
 Multiplying Decimals
 Another example – same numbers
but with the decimals in different
places.
1.2  one digit here
x .39  two digits here
108
_36_
.468  three digits here
 WHOA!
 Hang on! Did that last problem say 1.2
x .39 = .468?

Question: How can you multiply 1.2 by

something and get an answer less than
1.2?

Answer: Anytime you multiply by

something less than 1, the answer is
smaller than the number you started
with.
 Multiplying Decimals

 If the answer doesn’t have enough

digits, you will have to put zeroes
between the decimal and the first
number.
.12  two digits here
x .39  two digits here
108
_36_
.0468  four digits here
 Dividing Decimals
 Let’s name the parts of a division
problem so we can talk about
them.
Notice that the 7
7 quotient is over the 6, not
the 5.
The quotient goes
8 56 over the LAST
digit you are
divisor dividend working with.
 Dividing Decimals
 Dividing decimals is a lot like
dividing whole numbers, but
we need a way to get the
decimals in the right place in
the answer.

 Before we start dividing

decimals, let’s look at
dividing some whole
numbers.
 Dividing Decimals

42 ÷ 6 = 7 And 420 ÷ 60 = 7

In the second equation, both 42 and 6

have been multiplied by ten.
Because both numbers were
multiplied by the same thing, the
quotient did not change.
Dividing Decimals
 We can use that trick to divide
numbers with decimals.
 Because moving the decimal to the
right is just like multiplying by ten, if
we move the decimal the same
number of places in both numbers,
our quotient stays the same.
 Dividing Decimals
Here’s an example: .132 ÷ .12:

.12 .132
If these were whole numbers, you would say,
“How many times will 12 go into 13?” But it’s
harder to think of .12 and .13.

If you could move the decimal of the divisor (.12)

over 2 places, you would have a whole number.
You can do that as long as you move the decimal
of the dividend over 2 places as well.
 Dividing Decimals
So now our problem looks like this:
1.1 NOTICE: The decimal moved
12. 13.2 straight up from the dividend
to the quotient.
-12
12 Lining up the number in the
-1 2 quotient and the dividend is
VERY important because if
0 they are wrong, your decimal
will be in the wrong place.
ALWAYS Check!
 Now that we have an answer, we need to check our
work.
 Multiply the quotient by the divisor. You should get
the dividend back.

1.1 1 digit
x.12 2 digits
22
11
.132 3 digits
 Hang on!
 How can we take
two small numbers
like .12 and .132
and divide them
and get a bigger
number? Doesn’t
dividing always
mean you get a
smaller number?
 Dividing Decimals
 Another way to look at .132 ÷ .12
is to say, “How many groups of .12
does it take to make .132?”

.12 + .012 = .132

 It takes one and a little more, so

our answer of 1.1 looks
reasonable.
 Dividing Decimals
 Let’s try another example:

1.25 ÷ .4 .4 1.25

First of all, let’s estimate how many .4’s it would

take to make 1.25

.4 + .4 + .4 = 1.2 so it will take 3 groups of .4 plus

a little more to make 1.25
 Dividing Decimals
3.1 First, move the decimal in the
divisor and the dividend.
4. 12.5
-12 In this case, we have pulled
05 down all our numbers, but
-4 we still have a remainder.
1 DO NOT tack your
remainder onto the end
of your answer!
 Annexing Zeroes
 Remember that adding zeroes at the end of a
number does not change its value.
12.5 = 12.50000

 If you need to keep dividing, just annex zeroes,

pull down & keep dividing until you get a
remainder of zero (or until you see a pattern.)
 Annexing Zeroes-
3.125 When you get a
4. 12.5000 remainder of
-12 zero, you can
05 stop pulling down
-4 zeroes.
10
-8
20
-20
0
 Check Your Work!
The original problem was 1.25 ÷ .4.
The quotient was 3.125

Check: 3.125 3 digits

x .4 1 digit
1.2500 4 digits

Since 1.2500 = 1.25, our answer is correct.

 Dividing Decimals
 Sometimes when we divide, the quotient of
the two numbers makes a pattern that
never stops!

 This is called a “repeating decimal.”

 The kind that does stop is called a

“terminating decimal.” If you can work
your problem to a remainder of zero, you
have a terminating decimal.
 Dividing Decimals
Tip:

Divisors that have factors of all

twos or fives will definitely
terminate.
(like 2, 4, 5, 8, 10. . .)

Everything else can repeat – it

depends on the dividend.
 Dividing Decimals
 Here is a repeating decimal.

.3 5.56 First, move the decimal.

.
Put the decimal on the
3. 55.6 quotient line.
 Repeating Decimals

18.5 When you’ve pulled

3. 55.6 down all your
-3 numbers and you
25 still have a
-24
remainder, you
16
-15 need to annex
zeroes and keep
1
going.
Repeating Decimals

18.533 From here on, no

3. 55.6000 matter how many
-3 zeroes we pull
25 down, we will
-24
always get 10 and
16
-15 the next number
will always be 3.
10
-9 The 3 is repeating.
10
Repeating Decimals
 To show that a number repeats,
place a bar over all the numbers
that form the pattern.
 In our example, only the 3 was
repeating:
18.53
Get the “point”?
 Decimals are a pretty convenient way
to represent fractional values.
 Decimal rules are not difficult, but
even though you know the rules, you
must practice them until they are
second nature!