Division is splitting a number into equal groups.
To divide big numbers, use long division.
You learned about long division in 3rd grade, but that was a long time ago.
Let's review by solving a problem together.
86 ÷ 2 = ?
First, write your problem in long division form.
Tip: Your answer, or quotient, will go above the long division bar.
To do long division, you divide each digit of the dividend, one at a time, starting with the biggest digit.
You also include remainders from previous steps along the way.
Let's try it together.
Look at the first digit of the dividend, 8.
How many times can 2 fit into 8? 🤔
That's right, 4.
So, we write the 4 on top as quotient.
Tip: quotient means the answer to your division problem.
Now, we need to see if there's a remainder. This is a two-step combo move: first we multiply, then subtract. Check it out.
1️⃣ First, we multiply 4 and 2 and write that below the 8.
2️⃣ Next, we subtract this product (8) from the digit in the dividend (8) to get the remainder.
Great job! 👍 The 0 below the new line is our remainder so far.
Now, bring down the next digit in the dividend, 6. ✅
Why do we bring down the 6? 🤔
Because it's an easy way to combine this digit with any remainder from the previous step.
Now, we're ready to find the next digit in our quotient.
Can you tell how many 2's fit into a 6?
Correct, 3.
So, again, we write the 3 on top, as quotient.
Are we done?
Not yet. We need to see if there's a remainder.
Do you remember the multiply-subtract combo move? Let's do that again.
1️⃣ Multiply 3 and 2 and write that below the 6.
2️⃣ Then, subtract this product from the digit in the dividend, 6.
The 0 tells us there's no remainder.
Since there's no remainder, we're done. Nice work. 👏
So, can you tell what the quotient, or answer, is?
That's right, 43.
86 ÷ 2 = 43
Awesome!
Think of long division like a boss battle in a video game. You have to follow the right steps to win. You can do it. 😺
Now, let's try one more example, this time with a remainder.
99 ÷ 4 = ?
First, we write the problem in long division form.
Now, look at the first digit of the dividend, 9.
How many 4's can fit into a 9? 🤔
Very good, 2.
So, again, write the 2 on top. That's the first digit of your quotient, or answer.
Now, to see if there's a remainder, we do that two-part multiply-subtract combo move again.
1️⃣ First, multiply 2 and 4 and write the product below the 9.
2️⃣ Then, subtract this product, 8, from the number on top, 9.
Great. So doing these steps, we found the first digit of our answer, 2_. We also found a remainder, 1.
Now, let's bring down the next digit in the dividend, 9.
Since there is a remainder from last time, we combine it with the 9, and treat them as a whole number, 19.
Now, how many 4's fit into a 19?
That's right, 4.
So, we write the 4 on top as quotient.
Are we done?
Not yet.
Finally, we do the two-part combo move to find the remainder.
1️⃣ First, we multiply 4 and 4 and write that below the 19.
2️⃣ Then, we subtract this product, 16, from the number above it, 19.
Very good. 👍
But wait. 🙀 We have a remainder, 3, this time.
When this happens, just write the remainder on top, after the quotient, like this:
So here's our answer:
99 ÷ 4 = 24 R 3
Congratulations! 🎉 You just learned how to divide numbers using long division.
Now, let's practice.
Tip: If you're feeling a bit confused, check out the third grade lesson on long division. It has even more examples.