Divide decimals by 10, 100 and 1,000 - KS2 Maths resources for Year 6

Dividing decimals by 10, 100 and 1,000

A boy with a thought bubble containing text showing ÷10, ÷100 and ÷1,000.

When you divide a decimal by 10, 100 or 1,000, the place value of the digits decreases.

The number decreases in value by 10, 100 or 1,000 times.

The digits move to the right as the number gets smaller in value.

Remember, the decimal point does not move.

Quiz: Divide decimals by 10, 100 and 1,000

Test out your knowledge of dividing decimals by 10, 100 and 1,000 with this quiz, then read on to complete the page.

Decimals in daily life

Being able to divide decimals by 10, 100 or 100 can help you in everyday life.

Take a look at some examples:

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Image caption,
Convert pounds to pence.
Image caption,
Convert measures, such as grams to kilograms or litres to millilitres.
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Convert length, such as metres to centimetres or centimetres to millimetres.

Using a place value chart

You can use a place value chart to help you to divide by 10, 100 and 1,000. This helps you to see how the digits change in value.

A trick to help you remember how many places the digits need to move is to look at the zeros in 10, 100 and 1,000.

÷ 10 - there is 1 zero - move digits 1 place to the right
÷ 100 - there are 2 zeros - move digits 2 places to the right
÷ 1,000 - there are 3 zeros - move digits 3 places to the right

Let's take a look at a place value chart to see how the digits move one place to the right when dividing by 10.

A place value table showing how 3.4 is divided by 10. In the first row the ones column contains a 3 and the tenths column contains a 4. The ones and tenths columns are separated by a decimal point. In the second row the ones column contains a 0, the tenths column a 3 and the hundredths column a 4. Arrows connect the matching numbers from each row.

The calculation is:

3.4 ÷ 10 = 0.34

3 ones become 3 tenths. 4 tenths become 4 hundredths.

To divide by 100, you move the digits 2 places to the right. There are 2 zeros in 100.

The decimal point does not move.

Take a look at the next place value chart to see how the digits move two places to the right when dividing by 100.

A place value table showing how 68 is divided by 100. In the first row the tens column contains a 6 and the ones column contains an 8. In the second row the ones column contains a 0, the tenths column a 6 and the hundredths column an 8. The ones and tenths columns are separated by a decimal point Arrows connect the matching numbers from each row.

The calculation is:

68 ÷ 100 = 0.68

6 tens become 6 tenths. 8 ones become 8 hundredths.

Don’t forget to add your decimal point and if there are no hundreds, tens or ones in your answer. Then add a 0 in front of the decimal point.

Finally, let’s see what happens when we divide 4,560 by 1,000.

There are 3 zeros in 1,000, so you need to move the digits 3 places to the right to divide by 1,000.

A place value table showing how 4,560 is divided by 1,000. In the first row the thousands column contains a 4, the hundreds column a 5, the tens column a 6 and the ones column a 0. In the second row the ones column contains a 4, the tenths column a 5 and the hundredths column a 6. The ones and tenths columns are separated by a decimal point. Arrows connect the matching numbers from each row.

The calculation is:

4,560 ÷ 1,000 = 4.56

4 thousands become 4 ones. 5 tens become 5 tenths. 6 tens become 6 hundredths. 0 ones become 0 thousandths.

If there is a 0 at the end of a number, as there is in the example above, then once the 0 moves beyond the decimal point you no longer need to include it as it does not add any value to the number.

Remember, this is only if the 0 is at the end of the number.