Arithmetic/A Look Ahead at the Decimal System

So far, every number we have discussed has been an integer. What if something costs between two and three dollars? This is when decimals are used. A decimal point, which looks like a full stop (or period), separates the integral part of the number from the decimal part. Instead of each number being ten times as large, they become ten times as small.

• 1.5 : 1 + (5 ÷ 10)
• 3.85 : 3 + (8 ÷ 10 + 5 ÷ 100)