We want to estimate a quotient using our rounding skills. Let's start by looking at the given quotient.

984.76 \div 38.1

Our first step is to round the divisor to the nearest whole number. We follow a couple steps to do this.

Look at the digit to the right of the place that is being rounded to.
- If the digit is less than $5,$ then the number in the rounded place remains the same.
- If the digit is $5$ or greater, add $1$ to the number in the rounded place.
After rounding, remove any decimal digits.

In our case, the place that we are rounding to is the ones place, so we will look at the number in the tenths place. Let's round the divisor!

We found that

38.1

rounded to the nearest whole number is

38 .

38.1 \approx 38

Next, we will round the dividend so that the divisor and the dividend are compatible numbers. Compatible numbers are numbers that are easy to divide mentally. The best way to know that our numbers will be compatible is to round

984.76

to a number that is a multiple of

38 .

Let's list some multiples of

38 .

Multiples of 38 38, 76, \dots 912, 950, 988, 1026, \dots

The closest multiple of

38

to

984.76

is

988 .

Let's round

984.76

to

988

and then divide

988

by

38 .

By our estimation, $984.76$ divided by $38.1$ is about $26 .$

Exercise