Diving into Division

When I tell parents that their third grader is going to learn to divide, I am often met with looks of trepidation. It does seem like a very hard concept for wee ones to learn. However, that is what the curriculum calls for these days.

One thing I do to make this easier is to spend a good bit of time on the meaning of multiplication:

1. Repeated Addition
2. Groups of
3. Rows of (Arrays)
4. Times I count by

 Then when we move to division the concept does not seem near as daunting. I teach the meaning of division as:

1. Repeated Subtraction
2. Sharing into Groups
3. Making Equal Groups
4. Times I Count by
5. Invers Multiplication

Here is the PowerPoint I use when teaching about division.

Meaning of Division

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Here are some activities that students are asked to complete:

 

 

I love these videos to help students understand the Meaning of Division.

 

 

 



If your child likes to get on the computer, let them practice the concept of division with these online games:

Deep Dive Division


Digging Division

Zero the Hero

One of my favorite concepts to teach is multiplying by multiples of 10's and 100's. Once I teach students The Meaning of Multiplication and how to find the answers to multiplication facts using arrays, groups, skip counting and repeated addition, I love to totally impress them with some major multiplication problems like:

20 x 9=180    

400 x 6= 2,400    

5,000 x 7 = 35,000

 

I help students master this concept by introducing them to Zero the Hero.

He makes multiplying by mutliples of tens and hundreds simple. All students need to do is circle the basic fact. Find the product. Count the zeros and then add them to the answer.

Here is the PowerPoint presentation I use during class.
 

Multiplying By Multiples of 1...

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Once students practice a little while, it becomes second nature. It makes estimating with mutliplication a breeze.