Practice 1
Answer & reasoning
45/100 · Forty-five hundredths is 45/100.
Choose the denominator when turning a decimal into a fraction
Use the last named place to choose tenths or hundredths, and check that the fraction keeps the same value.
Try the practice questionsStart with this question
Why is 0.35 equal to 35/100 rather than 35/10?
The key idea: 0.35 means thirty-five hundredths. The final digit is in the hundredths place, so the written decimal fraction is 35/100.
Make the idea visible
- Read 0.35 as three tenths and five hundredths. Rename the three tenths as thirty hundredths.
- Combine the parts: thirty hundredths plus five hundredths makes thirty-five hundredths. Write 35/100.
- Read the denominator as the unit: one hundred equal parts make the whole, and thirty-five are selected. Keep 35/100 as the decimal fraction; simplifying is not needed for this task.
- Check the magnitude. 0.35 is below one, but 35/10 is 3.5, above three. A denominator choice that changes the size cannot be right.
A useful error to discuss
A learner might say: Every number after a decimal point can be put over ten.
Read the place-value unit. A single decimal place names tenths; two decimal places can be read together as hundredths. The number of written digits is useful only because it identifies that place.
Practise, then check
Try the first three questions with the model. Try the final check without help. A correct value is a starting point: explain how your units or drawing support it.
Practice 2
Answer & reasoning
8/100 · Eight hundredths is 8/100.
Practice 3
Answer & reasoning
0.3 · Three tenths uses one decimal place.
Independent check
Answer & reasoning
6/10 · Six tenths is 6/10, also 60/100 or 3/5.
Explain a new situation
A learner writes 0.50 as 50/100 and another writes 5/10. Can both be correct?
Discuss the explanation
Yes. Fifty hundredths and five tenths are both one half of the same whole. The fraction forms are different but equivalent.
Materials for your group
Student pages and teacher answers are separate. Download an HTML file to keep or use your browser to print or save as PDF.
Choose the next step
If the denominator is chosen mechanically, read the decimal aloud using its unit and draw it on a hundredths model. Simplification is optional here.
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