✏️ Dividing Decimals

About Dividing Decimals

Dividing by a decimal looks harder than it is, and the method that makes it easy is worth stating plainly: multiply both numbers by the same power of ten until the divisor is a whole number, and the answer does not change. Six point four divided by nought point eight becomes sixty-four divided by eight, and a pupil who can do the second can do the first. This worksheet builds fluency in that transformation. From the middle levels the divisor itself carries a decimal place, so the shift has to be made before anything else can happen — which is the whole point, since a divisor that is already whole lets a pupil skip the step they most need to practise. Every question is constructed backwards from its answer: the quotient is chosen first and the dividend is calculated from it, so the division is always exact, the divisor is never zero, and no recurring decimal or floating-point remainder can appear on the page. Answers are formatted from the same scaled whole numbers that generated the question, so the key and the sheet cannot drift apart. Twelve questions per page. Each level prints as a clean A4 sheet in black and white and downloads with its own separate answer key.

Common questions

What is the method?

Multiply both numbers by the same power of ten until the divisor is whole. The answer does not change, and the division becomes one you can already do.

Can a question produce a recurring decimal?

No. Each question is built backwards from its answer, so every division is exact.

Is the divisor ever zero?

No. It is chosen before the dividend is calculated, and never zero.

When does the divisor gain a decimal place?

From the middle levels, so the shift has to be made rather than skipped.