How to Order Decimals – Year 7 Theory and Practice

What are Decimals?

Decimals, much like fractions, are a way to represent parts of a whole. They are distinguished by the presence of a decimal point (.).

Examples:
– 0.5 means half of a number or 5 tenths
– 3.85 means 3 whole numbers, 8 tenths, and 5 hundredths

How To Compare Two Decimals?

To compare or order decimals, follow these steps:

1. Compare the digits in the tenths place (1st digit after the decimal point)

2. If they are the same, compare the hundredths place (2 digits after the decimal)

3. If needed, continue to the thousandths place (3 digits after the decimal), and so on

Always compare each place value from left to right until you find a difference.

Example On How to Order Decimals:

Example: Compare 9.9999, 9.09099, 9.99

Step 1: To make comparison easier, add zeros so all numbers have the same number of decimal places:

• 9.99990
• 9.09099
• 9.99000

Step 2: Now, ignore the whole number (9) and compare only the digits after the decimal:

• 99990
• 09099
• 99000

Step 3: Now we can see the order of the decimals in ascending order:

• 99990 => Highest
• 09099 => Lowest
• 99000 => 2nd Lowest

From smallest to largest: 09099 < 99000 < 99990