MIP1501 ASSIGNMENT 2 3036
DUE 1 JUNE 2026
1.1 . A grade 5 learner in the mathematics classroom writes 4008 as “four thousand
and eight”.
a) Is the answer by the learner correct? Motivate reasons for your answer.
1.1 Grade 5 Learner: 4008 as "four thousand and eight"
a) Is the learner's answer correct? Motivate reasons for your answer. (3)
it is incorrect. The number 4008 should be read as "four thousand eight" without the
word "and". In mathematical language, the word "and" is used to indicate a decimal
point. For example, 4.008 is read as "four and eight thousandths". By saying "four
thousand and eight", the learner is incorrectly suggesting a decimal point between the
thousands and the units. The correct way to read 4008 is "four thousand eight".
(MIP1501 Study Guide, 2020, p. 17)
b) Write 4008 in expanded form using powers of 10 and explain each step to a
grade 5 learner. (5)
To explain to a Grade 5 learner, I would say "Let's look at the number 4008. Each digit
has a special place that tells us its value, like a house number."
Step-by-step
The digit 4 is in the thousands place – this means 4 × 1000 = 4000
The digit 0 is in the hundreds place – this means 0 × 100 = 0
The digit 0 is in the tens place – this means 0 × 10 = 0
The digit 8 is in the units (ones) place – this means 8 × 1 = 8
Now using powers of 10:
, 1000 = 10³ (10 × 10 × 10)
100 = 10² (10 × 10)
10 = 10¹
1 = 10⁰
So 4008 = (4 × 10³) + (0 × 10²) + (0 × 10¹) + (8 × 10⁰)
c) Explain to the learner what the two zeros represent in 4008.
The two zeros in 4008 are placeholders.
I will explain to the learner "Imagine you have 4 thousand and 8 loose blocks. You don't
have any hundreds blocks and you don't have any tens blocks. But we need to write
something in those positions to show that they are empty. The zeros sit in the hundreds
and tens places to hold those positions open. Without them, the number would become
48, which is a much smaller number! Zero doesn't mean 'nothing' in the whole number
it means 'no hundreds' and 'no tens'." (MIP1501 Study Guide, 2020, p. 18)
d) If you remove both zeros, what number do you get? Explain the effect on the
value. (4)
If we remove both zeros from 4008, we get the number 48.
To explain to Intermediate Phase learners:
"Let me show you what happens when we remove zeros. 4008 is like having 4 thousand
and 8 individual blocks that's 4,008 blocks in total. But if we take away the zeros, we get
48 that's just forty-eight blocks. The zeros are like placeholders that keep the digits in
their correct positions. When we remove the zeros, the digit 4 moves from the
DUE 1 JUNE 2026
1.1 . A grade 5 learner in the mathematics classroom writes 4008 as “four thousand
and eight”.
a) Is the answer by the learner correct? Motivate reasons for your answer.
1.1 Grade 5 Learner: 4008 as "four thousand and eight"
a) Is the learner's answer correct? Motivate reasons for your answer. (3)
it is incorrect. The number 4008 should be read as "four thousand eight" without the
word "and". In mathematical language, the word "and" is used to indicate a decimal
point. For example, 4.008 is read as "four and eight thousandths". By saying "four
thousand and eight", the learner is incorrectly suggesting a decimal point between the
thousands and the units. The correct way to read 4008 is "four thousand eight".
(MIP1501 Study Guide, 2020, p. 17)
b) Write 4008 in expanded form using powers of 10 and explain each step to a
grade 5 learner. (5)
To explain to a Grade 5 learner, I would say "Let's look at the number 4008. Each digit
has a special place that tells us its value, like a house number."
Step-by-step
The digit 4 is in the thousands place – this means 4 × 1000 = 4000
The digit 0 is in the hundreds place – this means 0 × 100 = 0
The digit 0 is in the tens place – this means 0 × 10 = 0
The digit 8 is in the units (ones) place – this means 8 × 1 = 8
Now using powers of 10:
, 1000 = 10³ (10 × 10 × 10)
100 = 10² (10 × 10)
10 = 10¹
1 = 10⁰
So 4008 = (4 × 10³) + (0 × 10²) + (0 × 10¹) + (8 × 10⁰)
c) Explain to the learner what the two zeros represent in 4008.
The two zeros in 4008 are placeholders.
I will explain to the learner "Imagine you have 4 thousand and 8 loose blocks. You don't
have any hundreds blocks and you don't have any tens blocks. But we need to write
something in those positions to show that they are empty. The zeros sit in the hundreds
and tens places to hold those positions open. Without them, the number would become
48, which is a much smaller number! Zero doesn't mean 'nothing' in the whole number
it means 'no hundreds' and 'no tens'." (MIP1501 Study Guide, 2020, p. 18)
d) If you remove both zeros, what number do you get? Explain the effect on the
value. (4)
If we remove both zeros from 4008, we get the number 48.
To explain to Intermediate Phase learners:
"Let me show you what happens when we remove zeros. 4008 is like having 4 thousand
and 8 individual blocks that's 4,008 blocks in total. But if we take away the zeros, we get
48 that's just forty-eight blocks. The zeros are like placeholders that keep the digits in
their correct positions. When we remove the zeros, the digit 4 moves from the
