When dividing makes it bigger

A 6 m rope cut into 2 m pieces gives 3 pieces. The same rope cut into 1/2 m pieces gives 12 pieces.

The divisor decides

In 6 ÷ 2 = 3, the dividend is 6, the amount you divide. The divisor is 2, what you divide by. The quotient is 3, the answer.

Dividing by a number between 0 and 1 makes the amount bigger. Dividing by a number above 1 makes it smaller. Dividing by 1 leaves it alone.

That holds for any amount above zero.

Why? A piece under 1 fits more often than a piece of 1. A piece over 1 fits less often.

To find 6 ÷ 2/3, multiply by the flip, 3/2. 6 × 3/2 = 18/2 = 9.

Guess the way it moves in the lab. Then look at the bars.