Decimals: multiply (Grade 6)

If your child is in Grade 6, the topic "Decimals: multiply" is one of the ideas where confidence is most often won or lost. Here is what it means in plain words, a worked example you can follow together, and a few simple ways to help at home.

What Grade 6 children learn

• Estimate first, then multiply as whole numbers and put the decimal point back by counting places
• Multiply a decimal by a whole number and by another decimal
• Use the estimate to catch a decimal point in the wrong place

The key ideas

• Estimate first: 4.6 × 2.3 is about 5 × 2 = 10, so the answer must be close to 10.
• Ignore the decimal points and multiply as whole numbers: 46 × 23 = 1058.
• Count the decimal places in the question (one in 4.6 and one in 2.3 makes two), and put that many places in the answer: 10.58.
• Check the answer against the estimate. If it is 105.8 or 1.058, the decimal point is in the wrong place.

Quick examples

• 3.4 × 6 = 20.4
• 0.35 × 12 = 4.2
• 2.5 × 0.4 = 1
• 4.6 × 2.3 = 10.58

A worked example

How to help at home

• Ask your child to explain the first step of the worked example in their own words before you show them anything.
• Work through the "Try it yourself" question together, and talk about why the answer makes sense.
• Spend a few minutes a day on the free Tutorizer "Decimals" practice. Short and regular beats long and rare.
• If a step feels shaky, go back to the key ideas above and use objects, drawings or a number line.

Try it yourself

Want a challenge?

Next steps