Year 6

We can use tables facts to work out other multiplication and division facts with decimals

Year 6 Unit 4

What we are learning:

• This is about your child using what they know to work out what they don’t rather than doing the calculation as it is presented to them. For example, using the fact 8 x 7 = 56, other facts can be derived e.g.
  0.8 x 7 = 5.6 (0.8 is 10 times smaller than 8 so the answer is 10 times smaller than 56)
  Also, 8 x 0.7 = 5.6
  And, 0.8 x 0.7 = 0.56 (0.8 is 10 times smaller than 8 and 0.7 is 10 times smaller so the answer is 100 times smaller than 56)
• Make links with money. For example, if you have seven 20p coins, use the fact 7×2 = 14 to work out that you have 7 x 20p = 140p or 7 x £0.20 = £1.40.
  These are similar:
  8 x £0.40
  7 x £0.70

ACTIVITY 1: USING TABLES FACTS

Activities you can do at home:

Start with a whole number e.g. 24. Ask your child how many different multiplication or division facts they can note down using what they know about 24. They are likely to write:
6 x 4 = 24 24 ÷ 8=3
Then ask your child how many related facts involving decimals they can note down e.g. 0.8 x 3 = 2.4, 2.4 ÷ 0.08 = 30, etc.

Give your child some multiplication and division calculations involving decimals and ask your child to work out if they are correct or not.
E.g. 7 x 0.4 = 28 4.8 ÷ 0.8 = 6 0.09 x 0.3 = 0.27

Good questions to ask:

Which known fact are you using?
How do the size of the numbers in this calculation compare with that fact?
Can you show me using a place value chart that 0.3 is ten times smaller than 3?
What does that tell you about the answer?
Explain how you know it is correct or not

If your child:

Gets confused when making numbers smaller or bigger by factors of 10 (e.g. 10, 100 or 100 times smaller or bigger)
Use a place value chart to explore this visually, keeping the decimal point in the same place and sliding the number to make it bigger (left) or smaller (right)

Is confident and fast with these calculations
Sometimes ask them to explain their thinking process out loud to see if they are using an efficient method and that they understand what they are doing.