Long Division (ID)

Long division is something that I haven't done since elementary school. Once I got to middle school it was all about the calculators. However, this past week I have been required to do long division in two classes, physical education and pre calculus. It had been so long since I had done long division that I had completely forgotten the process. I had to go on the internet for lessons on how it was done so I could refresh my memory.

It was in gym that I was first asked to do long division. We are learning how to calculate the body mass index of an individual by their height and weight. The equation is the individual's weight divided by their height in inches squared and then multiply that by 703. Mr. G makes us solve the problem without use of a calculator. The tricky part is when the decimals come in and you have to start adding zeros to the dividend. In pre calculus we are dividing polynomials. Even though the divider has multiple terms, I find it MUCH simpler than dividing decimals.

The process of long division is extremely annoying. But I understand where my gym teacher comes from when he states that we should be able to figure numbers out by hand. There's going to be a day when a cashier at the store isn't working and we're going to have to make sure that the clerk is charging us the right price. It's annoying, but it's good to learn it just in case, you never know.