Lesson 5: Dividing Decimals Using Models and Algorithms

Property

When modeling decimal division with base ten blocks, arrange the dividend blocks into equal groups of the divisor size.
If the divisor contains hundredths, convert tenths blocks to hundredths blocks by trading $1$ tenth for $10$ hundredths to enable proper grouping.

Examples

Property

When dividing on a place value chart, if a place value has a remainder after sharing, unbundle each remaining unit into 10 units of the next smaller place value. This is based on the principle that 1 larger unit is equivalent to 10 of the next smaller unit (e.g., $1 \text{ one} = 10 \text{ tenths}$, $1 \text{ tenth} = 10 \text{ hundredths}$).

Examples

Property

The steps of the long division algorithm are a symbolic representation of the actions performed on a place value chart.

• Distributing disks into groups $\rightarrow$ Divide
• Finding the total disks distributed $\rightarrow$ Multiply
• Finding the leftover disks $\rightarrow$ Subtract
• Decomposing leftovers and combining with the next place value $\rightarrow$ Bring Down

Examples