what is the best estimate of 33.6?

Question

I amtrying to explain how to round off numbers to my my grandson

Answer 1

Use a number line!  This way, he can see what the answer is.....

 

 

33.0--33.1--33.2--33.3--33.4--33.5--33.6--33.7--33.8--33.9--40.0

It is easy to visualize which WHOLE number 33.6 is closer to.  Next just explain that in rounding, a .5 means to go up to the next number & anything less will remain the same.  This works well with fractions as well.  In fact, using fractions is an excellent way to visualize what part of 1 a fraction really is...

 

Hope this helps & good luck!

Jay

 

Answer 2

Hi Rita,

As a Bubbe (grandmother) myself I'd answer it this way:  

"Do you remember last year when it was almost your ___th birthday?  One month or so before the big day we started saying that you were almost __(the next age). We estimated and to do this we rounded the number up to the next year; the coming year. When you take a look at the number 33.6 what so you see first?  You see the 33. And you know that it will be 33 until it turns 34, just like you really stayed ___ until you turned ___.  But somewhere after the middle point; after 33 and 1/2 which we write 33.5 the number changes and starts calling itself (to anyone who will listen to a number) saying "I'm 34....almost." When it matter that we're very, very accurate we say you are __ year, 11 months and 29 days old. And when it matters very, very much we say a number like this one is 33.657890564677. When it matters a little less we say you are __ and 11 months old and, in the same way we say this number is 33.6.  It's short. It's easy. Nut when it hardly matters at we say you're almost ___ and we make it really easy and say that 33.6 is "34."

When there is something new you, or he. have never seen before, begin with what you do know.

Hope that helps.

Dr. Walli

 

 

 

Answer 3

I would try and show him on a number-line. You could draw a line with a few numbers on it then place the decimals within the numbers. This will provide a visual representation for your grandson. You could also try to explain that 1.5 would be the same as one and one half. I believe a visual guide will be easiest to show him that you don't always have to have a full amount of something.