Dividing by 10, 100, and 1,000

Dividing by 10, 100, and 1,000 can be done using long division, like we’ve shown, or you can take a quick short cut to make life a little easier. There are several easy steps you can follow to use this short cut. First, start with a problem that looks like this:

Next, count the number of zeroes in the divisor. In this case, the divisor is 10, so we can count 1 zero. Be aware that the decimal place of 38 is after the 8, so it can be re-written like this: 38. Then, you’re going to move the decimal place of the dividend (38.) to the left the same number as the number of zeroes you counted earlier (so in this problem, 1).

Thus, your new answers is 3.8.

Let's try it one more time.

Now, count the number of zeroes in the divisor. There are 2 zeroes in 100. This means that you will move the decimal place after 489. two spaces to the left, like this:

Thus, your answer is 4.89.

Now, here are a few for you to try. Be sure to include a decimal point in your answer, even if it's at the end. We'll be using the fraction bar, / , to show division in these problems.