Objectives
At the end of this lesson, students should be able to:
Comparing decimals involves identifying which decimal is greater than (>), less than (<) or equal to (=) the other decimal to which it is being compared.With the knowledge of decimal place value, decimals can be compared easily
Example 1
Put in (>, < or =)
a)8.24 _____ 3.89
b) 16.821 _____ 24.102
c) 865.2 ______ 98.75
d) 9.2 ______ 8.4739
Solution
a) 8.24˃3.89
Looking at the whole numbers, 8 is larger than 3, therefore 8.24 is greater than 3.89.
b) 16.821 ˂ 24.102
Comparing whole numbers, 24 is greater than 16, therefore, 16.821 is less than 24.102
c) 865.2˃98.75
865 is greater than 98, therefore, 865.2 is greater.
d) 9.2˃ 8.4739
In this example, one may wonder why the number with a greater number of digits isn’t the greater decimal. However, the number of digits in a decimal does not particularly play any role in comparison if the whole numbers are different. Therefore 9.2 is greater than 8.4739.
Example 2
Compare these:
a)4.2 _____ 4.9
b) 16.25 _____ 16.09
c) 6.182 ______ 6.190
d) 5.241 ______ 5.247
Example 3
Put in >,< or =
a) 8.0 ________ 0.8 b) 18.5 ______ 2.97
c) 0.9 ________ 0.009 d) 2.86 ________ 0.97
e) 3 _______ 3.5 f) 8 5/10 ________ 8.5
Solution
a) 8.0 ____>____ 0.8 b) 18.5 ___>___ 2.97
c) 0.9 ____>____ 0.009 d) 0.97___˂_____ 2.86
e) 3 ____=___ 3.5 f) 8 5/10 ____=____ 8.5