Lesson: Long Division Step by Step (Grade 4)

Division means sharing fairly. Long division is just 4 steps, again and again.

What does division mean?

12 cookies. 4 plates. Share them fairly. How many on each plate?

Long division does the same thing with bigger numbers.

The 4 steps

Let's do 852 ÷ 4

We share 852 into 4 groups. Go one digit at a time, from the left.

Round 1: the 8

• Divide: 8 ÷ 4 = 2. Write 2 on top.
• Multiply: 2 × 4 = 8.
• Subtract: 8 − 8 = 0.
• Bring down the 5.

Round 2: the 5

• Divide: 5 ÷ 4 = 1 (4 fits once). Write 1 on top.
• Multiply: 1 × 4 = 4.
• Subtract: 5 − 4 = 1.
• Bring down the 2. Now we have 12.

Round 3: the 12

• Divide: 12 ÷ 4 = 3. Write 3 on top.
• Multiply: 3 × 4 = 12.
• Subtract: 12 − 12 = 0. No digits left. Done!

     213
    -----
 4 ) 852
     8
     -
      5
      4
      -
      12
      12
      --
       0

852 ÷ 4 = 213

Check it

Multiply back: 213 × 4 = 852. ✔ It matches, so the answer is right.

Something left over?

Sometimes it doesn't share evenly. 13 cookies on 4 plates: each plate gets 3, and 1 cookie is left. We write 3 R1 ("3 remainder 1").

Watch out for zero

In 412 ÷ 4, the 1 is too small to share by 4. Write a 0 on top, then bring down the 2. The answer is 103, not 13.

Practice

Start with 2-digit by 1-digit. Then try 3-digit by 1-digit.