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Introduction to Exponents (6th grade math)

An exponent is simply a shorthand notation to indicate repeated multiplication. For example, 53 means 5&bnsp;x&bnsp;5&bnsp;x&bnsp;5. We find the value of various powers, and look at the easy powers of 0, 1, and 10.

An important connection is that squaring a number gives us the area of a square with that number as its side length. For example, 9 squared, or 92, is the area of a square with side length 9 units.

Similarly, cubing a number gives us the volume of a cube with that number as the edge length. For example, (8 cm)3 is the volume of a cube with edge length 8 cm.



In this second part, we look at the pattern in the powers of 2, starting from 2 to the first power, onward to 2 to the 10th power. Then we look at the pattern in the powers of 10, starting from 10^6 all the way down to 10^0 (with zero exponent).





See also

Exponents — online practice

Write expressions from word phrases — video lesson

Math Mammoth Grade 6 curriculum

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