Tuesday 7 October 2014

How to: Teach Long Division

My favourite Maths topic to teach to senior classes is long division. Some people may find that a little strange, but I love teaching children something they think should be really challenging and seeing the pride they have in their work when they have nailed the method in only a few lessons. (Note: This lesson should only be taught once the children have mastered simple division and once they have a good understanding of the concepts of division, place value and why we do what we do during the procedure.) 
My method of teaching it is as follows:

1. Say the problem is 425 ÷ 25:
Write down all of the x25 tables along the side of the page before you do anything else. Get the children to use a rough work column to do these workings if they are unable to do them in their head. Usually I only tell them to do 6 of the tables as often you will not have to go further than that and you can always add to the list later if you need to!
E.g.
25 x 0 = 0
25 x 1 = 25                             Rough Work
25 x 2 = 50                                  25
25 x 3 = 75                                   x3
25 x 4 = 100                                  75
25 x 5 = 125
25 x 6 = 150
25 x 7 = 175
2. Highlight (with a yellow highlighter or a red pen) what I call the 'Magic Numbers'. These are the middle numbers and they are called this for a very specific reason.
E.g.
25 x 0 = 0                             Rough Work
25 x 1 = 25                                   25
25 x 2 = 50                                   x3                              
25 x 3 = 75                                   75
25 x 4 = 100
25 x 5 = 125
25 x 6 = 150
25 x 7 = 175
When you have done this, you can start solving the problem as you would any division sum. This is where the 'Magic Numbers' come into play.

3. Write down the sum:
                                                       
25/425
4. Cover the last two numbers as you would with simple division (with your finger!):
              
25/435
5. Check the tables you have written out to see which answer is closest to the 4 you can still see.
        
25 x 0 = 0    
25 x 1 = 25  
25 x 2 = 50  
25 x 3 = 75  
25 x 4 = 100
25 x 5 = 125
25 x 6 = 150
25 x 7 = 175

As you can see above, 0 is! Therefore the magic number belonging to that sum (25 x 0 = 0) FLIES on top of the tree branch and sits there, while the answer which is not magic and unable to fly (0), crawls in under the tree instead to be taken away from 4.
        0      
25/435
-0
 4
6. Uncover the second digit in the number (2) and see it follow the 4, down below the line as it was feeling lonely up there!:
    0  
25/425
  - 0
    42
7. Now you have 42 ÷ 25. Look at the tables you have written earlier and see which answer is closest to 42.                         
25 x 0 = 0    
25 x 1 = 25  
25 x 2 = 50  
25 x 3 = 75  
25 x 4 = 100
25 x 5 = 125
25 x 6 = 150
25 x 7 = 175
In this case 25 x 1 = 25 is closest. Therefore the magic 1 flies on top of the branch again and the 25 crawls in under the tree to be taken away from 42.
    01  
25/425
  -0
   42
 - 25
8. Uncover the final digit in the number (5). It gets very lonely too so decides to come and join the 17: 
      01   
25/425
  - 0
    42
     -25
      175
9. Now you have 175 ÷ 25. Look at the tables that were written out earlier to see which answer is closest to 175.                       
25 x 0 = 0    
25 x 1 = 25  
25 x 2 = 50  
25 x 3 = 75  
25 x 4 = 100
25 x 5 = 125
25 x 6 = 150
25 x 7 = 175
In this case 25 x 7 = 175 is closest. The magic 7 flies up on top of the tree and the 175 crawls in underneath to be taken away, leaving us with 0.
   017
25/425
  - 0
    42
  - 25
    175
  - 175
       0
That leaves us with 17 as an answer.

Every teacher has their own strategies for teaching long division, however I find this method works best for me. I also find using a highlighter to be a great novelty for the children and also a great visual aid for visual learners.
Don't forget that no matter what strategy you use, practice is the most important thing when it comes to long division. This website has some great worksheets you can use with your class if you want to give them as much practice as possible with the concept. Enjoy teaching long division!

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