MIP1501 Assignment 2 (COMPLETE ANSWERS) 2026 - DUE 1 June 2026

Question 1 (37) 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. (3) b) Write 4008 in expanded form using powers of 10 and briefly explain each step to a grade 5 learner. (5) c) Explain to the learner what the two zeros represent in 4008. (3) d) If you remove both zeros, what number do you get? Explain the effect on the value to the intermediate phase learners in simple terms. (4) 1.2. A grade 6 learners spends 0.3 hours on a mathematics class-activity. a) Explain to your grade 6 learners how you will convert 0.3 hours to minutes and seconds, explain each step. (3) b) Express 45 minutes as a fraction of an hour in base‑60 (i.e. as a sexagesimal decimal) ( 4) c) If a task takes 1 hour 25 minutes, write this as a decimal in base‑10 and in base‑60. Which is more precise for exact fractions? (4) 1.3. A learner in an Intermediate Phase mathematics classroom says, “Zero is nothing, so it does not affect any operation.” a) Is this learner’s statement always true? Give and briefly explain an example where zero does affect the result. (4) b) Explain to your mathematics learners why division by zero is undefined using a real‑life situation. (4) c) What is the additive inverse of –8? Use zero in your explanation. (3)