What Division Means
Interpret whole-number quotients (e.g. 56 ÷ 8 as the number of objects in each share or the number of equal groups)
What a learner can do afterwards
- Explain that 56 ÷ 8 can mean sharing 56 into 8 equal groups or making groups of 8
- Draw a picture to represent a division expression
- Match a division expression to a word problem involving equal sharing or grouping
1 · Read
When you share sweets fairly with friends, you are dividing. You already know that dividing can mean sharing something evenly. There is another way to think about division too: making equal-sized groups and counting how many groups you get.
Look at 56 divided by 8. One story: 56 crayons shared between 8 friends, so each friend gets 7. Another story: 56 crayons packed into boxes of 8, so you fill 7 boxes. Both stories use 56 divided by 8, and both give the answer 7.
When you see a division expression, ask yourself: am I sharing into a certain number of groups, or am I making groups of a certain size? Either way, division finds the answer.
56 divided by 8 can mean sharing into 8 groups or making groups of 8, and both give you 7.
2 · Watch
Take it off screen
Where it sits
17 questions wait behind this lesson, each with its answer explained. Every answer feeds the sky: stars light as they are learned, and dim when it is time to come back.