GRADE 6 MATHEMATICS

Lesson 5: Decimal Points in Products

Let’s look at products that are decimals.

5.1: Multiplying by 10 (OPTIONAL)

1. In which equation is the value of x the largest?
x · 10 = 810 x · 10 = 81 x · 10 = 8.1 x · 10 = 0.81

2. How many times the size of 0.81 is 810?

5.2: Fractionally Speaking: Powers of Ten

Work with a partner to answer the following questions. One person should answer the
questions labeled “Partner A,” and the other should answer those labeled “Partner
B.” Then compare the results.
1. Find each product or quotient. Be prepared to explain your reasoning.

Partner A Partner B
1
a. 250 · 10
a. 250 ÷ 10

1 b. 250 ÷ 100
b. 250 · 100

1
c. 48 ÷ 10 c. 48 · 10

1
d. 48 ÷ 100 d. 48 · 100

2. Use your work in the previous problems to find 720 · (0.1) and 720 · (0.01) . Explain
your reasoning.

Pause here for a class discussion.

(Download at openupresources.org)
Unit 6: Arithmetic in Base 10 Lesson 5: Decimal Points in Products 31
 GRADE 6 MATHEMATICS

3. Find each product. Show your reasoning.

a. 36 · (0.1) b. (24.5) · (0.1) c. (1.8) · (0.1)

d. 54 · (0.01) e. (9.2) · (0.01)

4. Jada says: “If you multiply a number by 0.001, the decimal point of the number moves
three places to the left.” Do you agree with her statement? Explain your reasoning.

5.3: Fractionally Speaking: Multiples of Powers of Ten

1. Select ​all​ expressions that are equivalent to (0.6) · (0.5) . Be prepared to explain your
reasoning.
a. 6 · (0.1) · 5 · (0.1) b. 6 · (0.01) · 5 · (0.1)

1 1 1 1
c. 6 · 10
·5· 10
d. 6· 1,000
·5· 100

1 1 6 5
e. 6 · (0.001) · 5 · (0.01) f. 6 · 5 · 10
· 10
g. 10
· 10

(Download at openupresources.org)
Unit 6: Arithmetic in Base 10 Lesson 5: Decimal Points in Products 32
 GRADE 6 MATHEMATICS

2. Find the value of (0.6) · (0.5) . Show your reasoning.

3. Find the value of each product by writing and reasoning with an equivalent expression
with fractions.

a. (0.3) · (0.02) b. (0.7) · (0.05)

Are you ready for more?

Ancient Romans used the letter I for 1, V for 5, X for 10, L for 50, C for 100, D for 500, and M
for 1,000.
Write a problem involving merchants at an agora, an open-air market, that uses
multiplication of numbers written with Roman numerals.

(Download at openupresources.org)
Unit 6: Arithmetic in Base 10 Lesson 5: Decimal Points in Products 33
 GRADE 6 MATHEMATICS

Lesson 5 Summary
1 1
We can use fractions like 10
and 100
to reason about the location of the decimal point in a
product of two decimals.
Let’s take 24 · (0.1) as an example. There are several ways to find the product:
• We can interpret it as 24 groups of 1 tenth (or 24 tenths), which is 2.4.
1 24
• We can think of it as 24 · 10 , which is equal to 10 (and also equal to 2.4).
1
• Multiplying by 10 has the same result as dividing by 10, so we can also think of the
product as 24 ÷ 10 , which is equal to 2.4.

Similarly, we can think of (0.7) · (0.09) as 7 tenths times 9 hundredths, and write:

(7 · 101 ) · (9 · 100
1
)

We can rearrange whole numbers and fractions:

1 1 1 63
(7 · 9) · ( 10 · 100 ) = 63 · 1,000 = 1,000

This tells us that (0.7) · (0.09) = 0.063 .

Here is another example: To find (1.5) · (0.43) , we can think of 1.5 as 15 tenths and 0.43 as
43 hundredths. We can write the tenths and hundredths as fractions and rearrange the
1 1 1
factors. (15 · 10 ) · (43 · 100 ) = 15 · 43 · 1,000

1 1 1
Multiplying 15 and 43 gives us 645, and multiplying 10
and 100
gives us 1,000
. So
1
(1.5) · (0.43) is 645 · 1,000 , which is 0.645.

My Reflections

Lesson 5: Decimal Points in Products

● I can use place value and fractions to reason about multiplication of decimals.

(Download at openupresources.org)
Unit 6: Arithmetic in Base 10 Lesson 5: Decimal Points in Products 34
 GRADE 6 MATHEMATICS

Lesson 5: Practice Problems

1
1. a. Find the product of each number and 100
.

122.1 11.8 1350.1 1.704

b. What happens to the decimal point of the original number when you multiply it by
1
100
? Why do you think that is? Explain your reasoning.

2. Which expression has the same value as (0.06) · (0.154) ? Select ​all​ that apply.
1 1
A. 6 · 100
· 154 · 1,000

1
B. 6 · 154 · 100,000

C. 6 · (0.1) · 154 · (0.01)

D. 6 · 154 · (0.00001)

E. 0.00924

3. Calculate the value of each expression by writing the decimal factors as fractions, then
writing their product as a decimal. Show your reasoning.

a. (0.01) · (0.02) b. (0.3) · (0.2) c. (1.2) · 5

d. (0.9) · (1.1) e. (1.5) · 2

(Download at openupresources.org)
Unit 6: Arithmetic in Base 10 Lesson 5: Decimal Points in Products 35
 GRADE 6 MATHEMATICS

4. Write three numerical expressions that are equivalent to (0.0004) · (0.005) .

5. Calculate each sum.

a. 33.1 + 1.95 b. 1.075 + 27.105 c. 0.401 + 9.28

6. Calculate each difference. Show your reasoning.

a. 13.2 − 1.78 b. 23.11 − 0.376 c. 0.9 − 0.245

7. On the grid, draw a quadrilateral ​that is not a rectangle​ that has an area of 18 square
units. Show how you know the area is 18 square units.

(Download at openupresources.org)
Unit 6: Arithmetic in Base 10 Lesson 5: Decimal Points in Products 36
 GRADE 6 MATHEMATICS

Lesson 6: Methods for Multiplying Decimals

Let’s look at some ways we can represent multiplication of decimals.

6.1: Which One Doesn’t Belong: Products (OPTIONAL)

Which expression doesn’t belong? Explain your reasoning.
A. 2 · (0.3) B. 2 · 3 · (0.1) C. 6 · (0.1) D. (0.1) · 6

6.2: Using Properties of Numbers to Reason about Multiplication

1. Elena and Noah used different methods to compute (0.23) · (1.5) . Both computations
were correct.

Analyze the two methods, then discuss these questions with your partner.

● Which method makes more sense to you? Why?

● What might Elena do to compute (0.16) · (0.03) ? What might Noah do to compute
(0.16) · (0.03) ? Will the two methods result in the same value?

2. Compute each product using the equation 21 · 47 = 987 and what you know about
fractions, decimals, and place value. Explain or show your reasoning.

a. (2.1) · (4.7) b. 21 · (0.047) c. (0.021) · (4.7)

(Download at openupresources.org)
Unit 6: Arithmetic in Base 10 Lesson 6: Methods for Multiplying Decimals 37
 GRADE 6 MATHEMATICS

6.3: Using Area Diagrams to Reason about Multiplication

1. In the diagram, the side length of each square is 0.1 unit.

a. Explain why the area of each square is ​not​ 0.1 square

unit.

b. How can you use the area of each square to find the area of the rectangle? Explain or
show your reasoning.

c. Explain how the diagram shows that the equation (0.4) · (0.2) = 0.08 is true.

2. Label the squares with their side lengths so the area of

this rectangle represents 40 · 20 .

a. What is the area of each square?

b. Use the squares to help you find 40 · 20 . Explain or show your reasoning.

3. Label the squares with their side lengths so the area of

this rectangle represents (0.04) · (0.02) .

Next, use the diagram to help you find (0.04) · (0.02) .

Explain or show your reasoning.

(Download at openupresources.org)
Unit 6: Arithmetic in Base 10 Lesson 6: Methods for Multiplying Decimals 38
 GRADE 6 MATHEMATICS

Lesson 6 Summary
Here are three other ways to calculate a product of two decimals such as (0.04) · (0.07) .
● First, we can multiply each decimal by the same power of 10 to
obtain whole-number factors.

Because we multiplied both 0.04 and 0.07 by 100 to get 4 and

7, the product 28 is (100 · 100) times the original product, so
we need to divide 28 by 10,000.

28 ÷ 10, 000 = 0.0028

4 7
● Second, we can write each decimal as a fraction, 0.04 = 100
and 0.07 = 100
, and
multiply them.
4 7 28
100
· 100
= 10,000
= 0.0028

● Third, we can use an area model. The product (0.04) · (0.07) can be thought of as the
area of a rectangle with side lengths of 0.04 unit and 0.07 unit.

In this diagram, each small square is 0.01 unit by 0.01

1 1
unit. Its area, in square units, is therefore ( 100 · 100 ),
1
which is 10,000 .

Because the rectangle is composed of 28 small squares, its area, in square units, must be:
1 28
28 · 10,000
= 10,000
= 0.0028

All three calculations show that (0.04) · (0.07) = 0.0028 .

My Reflections

Lesson 6: Methods for Multiplying Decimals

● I know and can explain more than one way to multiply decimals using fractions and
place value.
● I can use area diagrams to represent and reason about multiplication of decimals.

(Download at openupresources.org)
Unit 6: Arithmetic in Base 10 Lesson 6: Methods for Multiplying Decimals 39
 GRADE 6 MATHEMATICS

(Download at openupresources.org)
Unit 6: Arithmetic in Base 10 Lesson 6: Methods for Multiplying Decimals 40
 GRADE 6 MATHEMATICS

Lesson 6: Practice Problems

1. Find each product. Show your reasoning.

a. (1.2) · (0.11) b. (0.34) · (0.02) c. 120 · (0.002)

2. You can use a rectangle to represent (0.3) · (0.5) .

a. What must the side length of each square represent for the
rectangle to correctly represent (0.3) · (0.5) ?

b. What area is represented by each square?

c. What is (0.3) · (0.5) ? Show your reasoning.

3. One gallon of gasoline in Buffalo, New York costs $2.29. In Toronto, Canada, one liter of
gasoline costs $0.91. There are 3.8 liters in one gallon.

a. How much does one gallon of gas b. Is the cost of gas greater in Buffalo
cost in Toronto? Round your answer or in Toronto? How much greater?
to the nearest cent.

4. Calculate each sum or difference.

a. 10.3 + 3.7 b. 20.99 − 4.97 c. 15.99 + 23.51 d. 1.893 − 0.353

(Download at openupresources.org)
Unit 6: Arithmetic in Base 10 Lesson 6: Methods for Multiplying Decimals 41
 GRADE 6 MATHEMATICS

49 7
5. Find the value of 50
÷ 6
using any method.

6. Find the area of the shaded region. All angles are right angles. Show your reasoning.

7.

a. Priya finds (1.05) · (2.8) by calculating 105 · 28 , then moving the decimal point three
places to the left. Why does Priya’s method make sense?

b. Use Priya’s method to calculate (1.05) · (2.8) . You can use the fact that
105 · 28 = 2, 940 .

c. Use Priya’s method to calculate (0.0015) · (0.024) .

(Download at openupresources.org)
Unit 6: Arithmetic in Base 10 Lesson 6: Methods for Multiplying Decimals 42