Max Maths, Year 5, Learn together, Rounding off decimals (2)

In the Max Maths Year 5 curriculum, students are learning how to round off decimals to the nearest whole number. For example, when rounding the number 12.4, students are instructed to look at the digit in the tenths place, which is 4. Since this is less than 5, the number is rounded down, resulting in an approximate value of 12. Another example given is 175.51, where the tenths place holds a 5. According to the rules of rounding, this means the number should be rounded up, giving a rounded figure of 176. Similarly, for the number 1,572.78, the tenths digit is 7, prompting a rounding up to the nearest whole number, which would be 1,573.

The lesson also covers rounding off measurements to the nearest whole unit. For instance, when dealing with a length of 4 cm and 39 mm, which can also be written as 4.39 cm, students look at the tenths place again. With a 3 in the tenths place, the measurement is rounded down to 4 cm. In the case of a weight of 10 kg and 61 g, or 10.61 kg, the presence of a 6 in the tenths place means the weight is rounded up to the nearest whole kilogram, which is 11 kg. These examples illustrate the practical application of rounding decimals in everyday measurements.