3 5 Dividing Decimals 2010 Pearson Prentice Hall

§ 3. 5 Dividing Decimals © 2010 Pearson Prentice Hall. All rights reserved

Dividing by a Whole Number When dividing a decimal by a whole number, place the decimal point for the quotient directly above the decimal point in the dividend. 2. 16 12 8 48 48 0 The decimal points are aligned, one above the other. Divide as you normally divide whole numbers. Tobey & Slater, Basic College Mathematics, 6 e 2

Dividing by a Whole Number Example: Divide 0. 104 ÷ 4. 0. 026 Note the zero after the decimal point. 8 24 24 0 Tobey & Slater, Basic College Mathematics, 6 e 3

Dividing by a Whole Number Example: Divide 263. 82 ÷ 7 and round to the nearest hundredths. 37. 688 0 21 53 49 48 42 62 56 Note that the remainder is not zero. 60 Carry out the division to the thousandths place, and then round. An extra zero was added to carry out the division to the required place. 37. 688 is rounded to 37. 69 (the nearest hundredths). Tobey & Slater, Basic College Mathematics, 6 e 4

Dividing by a Decimal When dividing a decimal by another decimal, the division problem is converted into an equivalent problem that has a whole number as a divisor. Dividing by a Decimal 1. Make the divisor a whole number by moving the decimal point to the right. Mark that position with a caret ( ). Count the number of places the decimal point moved. 2. Move the decimal point in the dividend to the right the same number of places. Mark that position with a caret. 3. Place the decimal point of your answer directly above the caret marking the point of the dividend. 4. Divide as with whole numbers. Tobey & Slater, Basic College Mathematics, 6 e 5

Dividing by a Decimal Example: Divide 4. 209 ÷ 1. 83. . Place the decimal point of the answer directly above the caret. . 2. 3. Divide as normal. Move each decimal point to the right two places. 366 549 183 0 Mark the new position by a caret ( ). Tobey & Slater, Basic College Mathematics, 6 e 6