Division

1.0 Numbers · 1.3 Division

Syllabus tag: Kenya CBC | Grade 6 Mathematics | Strand 1.0 Numbers | Sub-Strand 1.3 Division (6 Lessons)

Lesson objectives

By the end of this topic, you will be able to:

Divide up to a 4-digit number by up to a 3-digit number
Estimate quotients by rounding the dividend and divisor to the nearest ten
Perform combined operations (addition, subtraction, multiplication, division) up to 3-digit numbers
Appreciate the use of division in real life

Dividing means sharing into equal parts, or finding how many times one number fits into another.

a) The words

The number being divided is the dividend. The number you divide by is the divisor. The answer is the quotient.

Take 4896 ÷ 136 = 36. The dividend is 4896, the divisor is 136, the quotient is 36.

Anything left over is the remainder.

b) Long division

Estimate first, so you know roughly what to expect.

Work from the left. See how many times the divisor fits and write that digit above. Then subtract, and bring down the next digit.

Keep going until there are no digits left to bring down.

c) Estimating the quotient

Round the dividend and the divisor to the nearest ten, then divide.

For 4896 ÷ 136, round to 4900 ÷ 140, which is about 35. The exact answer, 36, is close to that.

An estimate that is far from your answer means one of them is wrong. Usually it is the answer.

d) Remainders

Not every division is exact. 50 ÷ 8 gives 6 remainder 2.

Check it like this. Divisor × quotient + remainder should give back the dividend. Here 8 × 6 + 2 = 50, so it is right.

The remainder is always smaller than the divisor. A remainder of 9 when dividing by 8 means another 8 could still have gone in.

e) Combined operations

When a sum has several operations, there is an order.

Brackets first. Then multiply and divide, left to right. Then add and subtract, left to right.

Working straight from left to right gives a different, wrong answer. The multiplying and dividing must be done first.

f) Where this is used

Sharing money equally. Working out how many packets come from a sack. Finding a price per kilogram. Splitting a class into equal groups.

Words to know

Dividend — the number being divided.
Divisor — the number you are dividing by.
Quotient — the answer to a division.
Combined operations — a calculation using more than one of +, −, ×, ÷, done in the correct order.

:::checkpoint Check yourself

Try the exercises below — direct division, estimation, combined operations, and real-life sharing problems, the same four skills covered above.