Math 6 Honors ( Periods 1, 2, & 3)

Decimals 3-3

Although decimals ( termed decimal fractions) had been used for centuries, Simon Stevin in the 16th century began using them on a daily basis and he helped establish their use in the fields of sciences and engineering.

Note that
1/10 = 1/10¹
1/100 = 1/10²
1/1000 = 1/10³

We also know that
1/10= 0/1
1/100 = 0.01
1/1000 = 0.001
1/10000 = 0.0001
and so on... these strings of digits are called decimals.


SO 1/10 = 1/10¹= 0.01 and it is equal to 10^-1
Notice that 10^-1 is NOT a negative number-- it is a small number
and 10^-21 is not a negative number it is a VERY TINY number

AS with whole numbers, decimals use place values. These place values are to the RIGHT of the decimal point.
We need to be able to write decimals in words as well as expanded notation.
In class we used 0.6394 as our example

zero and six thousand three hundred ninety-four ten-thousandths.

Notice how this number when written in words begins...with "ZERO AND"
Why do we need to do that?

Also notice that there is a hyphen between ten and thousandths in ten-thousandths. It is critical to understand when you must place a hyphen.
We read the entire number to the right of the decimal point as if it represented a whole number, and then we give the place value of the digit farthest to the right.

So, although 0.400 is equivalent to 0.4
we must read 0.400 as "zero and four hundred thousandths."

Now look at the following words
"zero and four hundred-thousandths." What is the subtle difference between those two phrases above?
There is a hyphen in the last phrase-- which means that the hundred and the thousandths are attached and represent a place value so

zero and four hundred-thousandths is 0.00004 while
zero and four hundred thousandths is 0.400

Carefully see the distinction!!

Getting back to our 0.6394

to write it in decimals sums and then in exponents:
0 + 0.6 + 0.03 + 0.009 + 0.0004

0 + 6(0.1) + 3(0.01) +9(0.001) + 4(0.0001)

0(10⁰) + 6(10^-1)+ 3(10^-2)+ 9(10^-3)+ 4(10^-4)

14.35 is read as fourteen AND thirty-five hundredths.
When reading numbers, only use the AND to indicate the decimal point