Exponents

Agenda
6:05 – 6:15 Multiplication Drills
6:15 – 7:15 Exponents
7:15 – 7:30 Break

7:30 – 9:00 Exponents

The exponent of a number says how many times to use the number in a multiplication.

In 8² the “²” says to use 8 twice in a multiplication,
so 8² = 8 × 8 = 64

Example: 5³ = 5 × 5 × 5 = 125

• In words: 5³ could be called “5 to the third power”, “5 to the power 3” or simply “5 cubed”

Example: 2⁴ = 2 × 2 × 2 × 2 = 16

• In words: 2⁴ could be called “2 to the fourth power” or “2 to the power 4” or simply “2 to the 4th”.

Negative Exponents – What could be the opposite of multiplying? Dividing!

• A negative exponent means how many times to divide one by the number.
• Example: 8^-1 = 1 ÷ 8 = 0.125

What if the Exponent is 1, or 0?

1		If the exponent is 1, then you just have the number itself (example 91 = 9)
0		If the exponent is 0, then you get 1 (example 90 = 1)

Exponents Handout

(Source: Math is Fun)