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Everyday maths 1
Everyday maths 1

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2 Rounding

If you are out on a shopping trip, being able to quickly estimate the total cost of your shopping could help you to decide whether you have enough money to pay for it. Approximating answers to calculations is a very useful skill to have.

Remember the rounding rhyme that will help you:

Described image
Figure 4 ‘Four or less, let it rest. Five or more, raise the score!’
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A rounding rhyme: ‘Four or less, let it rest. Five or more, raise the score!’

Figure 4 ‘Four or less, let it rest. Five or more, raise the score!’

Watch this video to refresh your knowledge on rounding. You should make notes throughout:

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

Now try the following activities. Remember to check your answers once you have completed the questions.

Activity 5: Rounding to 10, 100 and 1,000

  1. Round these numbers to the nearest 10:
    • a.64
    • b.69
    • c.65

Check with our suggestions before continuing.

Answer

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Figure 5 A number line
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An illustration of a number line, with 64, 65 and 69 highlighted.

Figure 5 A number line

You can see that:

  • a.64 rounded to the nearest 10 is 60.
  • b.69 rounded to the nearest 10 is 70.
  • c.65 rounded to the nearest 10 is 70. (Remember: when a number is exactly halfway, you always round up. As the rhyme goes, ‘Five or more, raise the score!’)

Now practise rounding to the nearest 100. The rule is exactly the same.

  1. Round these numbers to the nearest 100:
    • a.325
    • b.350
    • c.365

Check with our suggestions before continuing.

Answer

Described image
Figure 6 A number line
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An illustration of a number line, with 325, 350 and 365 highlighted.

Figure 6 A number line

You can see that:

  • a.325 rounded to the nearest 100 is 300.
  • b.350 rounded to the nearest 100 is 400.
  • c.365 rounded to the nearest 100 is 400.

Now practise rounding to the nearest 1,000.

  1. Round these numbers to the nearest 1,000:
    • a.4,250
    • b.4,650
    • c.4,500
    • d.4,060

Answer

Described image
Figure 7 A number line
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An illustration of a number line, with 4,060, 4,250, 4,500 and 4,650 highlighted.

Figure 7 A number line

You can see that:

  • a.4,250 rounded to the nearest 1,000 is 4,000.
  • b.4,650 rounded to the nearest 1,000 is 5,000.
  • c.4,500 rounded to the nearest 1,000 is 5,000.
  • d.4,060 rounded to the nearest 1,000 is 4,000.

Hint: In this activity you should round to the nearest pound, so £4.67 would be rounded to £5.

Activity 6: Bill’s shopping

  1. Bill has £20 to spend on his shopping. Here’s a list of the items he selects, along with how much they cost:

    Described image
    Figure 8 A shopping list
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    An illustration of a shopping list, featuring the following items and their prices: British beef mince, £2.20; eight thick beef sausages, £1.24, thick sliced white loaf, 72p; pasta (500g), 79p; corn flakes, £1.78; chocolate biscuits, £1.29; milk (6 pints), £2.12; potatoes, £1.98; tomatoes, 69p; bananas, 90p; apples, £1.49; coffee, £4.13.

    Figure 8 A shopping list

    Use your rounding skills to work out whether Bill has enough money to pay for all of his shopping.

Answer

Rounding all of the items should give you a total of £19 – so yes, Bill probably has enough money to pay for all of his shopping.

  1. Can you total all of the items on the shopping list to see what the actual cost of Bill’s shopping is?

Answer

The total cost of all of the items on the shopping list comes to £19.33, which is very close to the answer you achieved through rounding.

Well done! You have now successfully rounded and carried out some basic number work. Can you see the importance of rounding? This is especially important when sticking to a budget.