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Maths Adventures

Zoo maths quest: division

A story-led junior maths adventure using animal counts, feeding plans and habitat maps to share rewards fairly and split teams into equal groups.

Quick answer

Division is sharing equally or splitting into groups. You can use division to share food, split teams, or share rewards fairly.

Learning outcome

By the end of this page, you will understand how to share things equally using division and solve simple division problems with real-world examples from a zoo adventure. Success signs:
  • You can share 12 cookies between 3 friends equally
  • You can solve a division problem like 15 ÷ 3 = 5
  • You can explain what happens when you divide by 1 or by 0
  • You can find the number of groups when sharing items fairly

Why this matters

Division helps us share things fairly and solve problems in everyday life. When you're at a zoo, you might need to share food between animals, split teams for a game, or divide a group into equal parts. Understanding division helps you be fair and solve problems quickly. In school, division helps you learn multiplication facts, solve word problems, and work with fractions. In games and sports, division helps you split teams, share rewards, and plan strategies. Even at home, you use division when sharing snacks or splitting chores.

How it works

Division means sharing things equally or splitting into groups. It's the opposite of multiplication. To divide:
  1. Start with a total number of things
  2. Decide how many groups you want
  3. Share the things equally between the groups
  4. Count how many things each group gets
Division can be shown as:
  • Sharing equally: 12 apples shared between 3 children = 4 apples each
  • Splitting into groups: 12 toys split into groups of 4 = 3 groups

Examples you can see

Let's go on a zoo adventure to see how division works! Example 1: Sharing Food At the zoo, there are 18 bananas to share between 6 monkeys. How many bananas does each monkey get?
  • Start with 18 bananas
  • Share between 6 monkeys
  • Each monkey gets 3 bananas
This is 18 ÷ 6 = 3 Example 2: Splitting into Groups The zoo has 24 giraffe legs. How many giraffes are there?
  • Each giraffe has 4 legs
  • We have 24 legs total
  • 24 ÷ 4 = 6 giraffes
Example 3: Sharing Rewards The zoo keeper has 20 goldfish treats. She wants to give 5 treats to each of the 4 fish tanks. How many treats does she need?
  • Each tank gets 5 treats
  • There are 4 tanks
  • 5 × 4 = 20 treats needed
This is 20 ÷ 4 = 5 treats per tank

Try it as a mini adventure

Zoo Maths Quest: The Great Animal Division Challenge! You are a zoo keeper helping prepare for the big animal feeding day. Here's your mission:
  1. First time: You have 36 fish to feed to the penguins. There are 6 penguin pens. How many fish go in each pen? 36 ÷ 6 = ?
  2. Second time: You have 48 carrots for the rabbits. There are 8 rabbit hutches. How many carrots go in each hutch? 48 ÷ 8 = ?
  3. Third time: You have 50 bananas for the monkeys. There are 5 monkey groups. How many bananas does each group get? 50 ÷ 5 = ?
  4. Fourth time: You have 28 peacocks. You want to split them into teams of 7. How many teams will you have? 28 ÷ 7 = ?
  5. Fifth time: You have 15 zebras and 3 cages. How many zebras go in each cage? 15 ÷ 3 = ?
Your adventure ends when you solve all 5 division problems!

Common mistakes

  • Mistake: Thinking 10 ÷ 2 = 5, but forgetting that 10 ÷ 2 = 5 (This is actually correct!)
    Why it happens: Confusion about what division means
    Fix: Use objects or drawings to show sharing equally
  • Mistake: Trying to divide by 0
    Why it happens: Not understanding that you can't split things into 0 groups
    Fix: Remember that anything divided by 0 is not possible
  • Mistake: Confusing division with multiplication
    Why it happens: Not seeing the relationship between the two operations
    Fix: Practice multiplication and division together to see how they work
  • Mistake: Not checking if the answer makes sense
    Why it happens: Rushing through problems
    Fix: Always check your answer by multiplying back

Parent and carer guide

To help your child with division, try these simple activities:
  • Use real objects like counters, fruits, or toys to show sharing
  • Ask questions like "If you have 12 sweets and 3 friends, how many do you each get?"
  • Play games where you split things equally, like sharing pizza or cookies
  • Use the division facts table below to practice together
  • Remember that it's okay to make mistakes - they help you learn!
For children who are struggling:
  • Start with small numbers (1-10)
  • Use visual aids like drawings or counters
  • Practice skip counting backwards
  • Reinforce that division is about sharing equally
For children who are excelling:
  • Try larger numbers (10-100)
  • Introduce word problems
  • Practice division with remainders
  • Use multiplication facts to check division answers

Practice questions

  1. 24 ÷ 4 = ?
  2. 18 ÷ 3 = ?
  3. 35 ÷ 7 = ?
  4. 42 ÷ 6 = ?
  5. 27 ÷ 9 = ?
  6. 36 ÷ 6 = ?
  7. 48 ÷ 8 = ?
  8. 15 ÷ 5 = ?
  9. 56 ÷ 7 = ?
  10. 21 ÷ 3 = ?
Answers:
  1. 6
  2. 6
  3. 5
  4. 7
  5. 3
  6. 6
  7. 6
  8. 3
  9. 8
  10. 7

FAQ

What is division?

Division is sharing things equally or splitting them into groups. It's the opposite of multiplication.

How can I practice division at home?

You can practice division by sharing food, splitting toys into equal groups, or using counters to show sharing problems.

What happens when you divide by 0?

You cannot divide by 0 because you can't split things into 0 groups. It's not possible in maths.

How do I know if my division answer is correct?

Check your answer by multiplying it back with the divisor. For example, if 12 ÷ 3 = 4, then 4 × 3 should equal 12.

Why is division important?

Division helps you share fairly, solve problems, and understand how things relate to each other in everyday life.