Skill: Write tenths as decimals

A tenth is one of 10 equal parts. The decimal point separates whole numbers from parts of a whole.

For a number of tenths:

• Write the whole-number part first.
• Write the decimal point.
• Write the number of tenths after the decimal point.

Example

Write $\frac{4}{10}$ as a decimal.

1. The denominator is $10$, so the whole is divided into ten equal parts.
2. The numerator is $4$, so we have four tenths.
3. Four tenths is written as $0.4$.

$$\frac{4}{10}=0.4$$

The $4$ in $0.4$ is in the tenths place. It tells us that $0.4$ means four tenths, not four whole ones.