SECTION 5.

1 DEFINITION OF PERCENT
How many cents are in one dollar? There are 100 cents in a dollar. How many years are
in a century? There are 100 years in a century. This gives you a clue about what the word
.
A percent is a ratio whose denominator is 100. We use the percent symbol %, to show
percent.
If 57% of college students are female, then by definition 57 out of every 100 community
college students are female. We can write this as the ratio . We can also represent it
visually as the following grid where 57 out of 100 squares have been shaded.

Media Lesson
The Meaning of Percent | Decimals | Pre-Algebra | Khan Academy (Duration
3:00)
View the video lesson, take notes and complete the problems below.
Shade 20% of the square below

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 Media Lesson
The Meaning of Percent Over 100 | Decimals| Pre-Algebra | Khan
Academy (Duration 2:21)
View the video lesson, take notes and complete the problems below.
Show 109% by shading.

YOU TRY:
For the following problems, write the percent as a ratio. Then shade the grid.
a) 35%

b) 117%

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 Media Lesson
Convert a Percent to a Ratio or Fraction (88% and 75%)
(Duration 2:58)
View the video lesson, take notes and complete the problems below.
1. According to a survey, 88% of college students have a smart phone. Write 88%
as a ratio.

2. According to a survey, 75% of community college students also work part-time or

full time. Write 75% as a ratio.

YOU TRY:
Write the following percent as a ratio.

c) In 2014, the unemployment rate for those with only a high school degree was 6%.

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 A. CONVERT PERCENTS TO FRACTIONS AND DECIMALS

I. Convert a Percent to a Fraction

Since percents are ratios, they can easily be expressed as fractions.

Convert a Percent to a Fraction

1. Write the percent as a ratio with the denominator 100.
2. Simplify the fraction if possible.

Media Lesson
Convert Percentages to Fractions (Duration 5:21)
View the video lesson, take notes and complete the problems below.

Write each percent as a fraction.

Percent Fraction

45%

6%

136%

64.2%

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 YOU TRY:
Convert the percent to a fraction.
d) 36% e) 24.5%

f) 125%
g) 33 %

II. Convert a Percent to a Decimal

In earlier chapters, we learned how to convert fractions to decimals, we will use this
method to convert a percent to a decimal.

We get the fraction To convert a fraction into a decimal we divide the numerator by
the denominator.

So 6% as a decimal is 0.06.

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If we do this to a few percents a pattern emerges. Converting a percent to a decimal
moves the decimal point to the left by two places.

Convert a Percent to a Decimal

1. Drop the % sign.
2. Divide by 100. (Shortcut: Move the decimal point to the left 2 places.)

Media Lesson
Convert Percentages to Decimals Two Methods (Duration 8:10)
View the video lesson, take notes and complete the problems below.
Write each percent as a decimal.

Percent Decimals

45%

6%

136%

64.2%

YOU TRY:
Convert the percent into a decimal.
h) 36% i) 24.5%

j) 133% k) 12.5%

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 B. CONVERT DECIMALS AND FRACTIONS TO PERCENTS

We learned how to convert a percent to a decimal. To convert a decimal to a percent we

do the opposite.
I. Convert a Decimal to a Percent

Convert a Decimal to a Percent

1. Multiply by 100. (Shortcut: Move the decimal point to the right 2 places.)
2. Add % sign.

Example 1: Convert 0.41 to a percent.

Example 2: Convert 0.04 to a percent.

Media Lesson
Convert Decimal to Percents (Duration 2:52)
View the video lesson, take notes and complete the problems below.
Percent: _________________________________
To convert a decimal to a percent: Multiply by __________ or
move the decimal __________________________________ to the ______________

Example 1: Convert 0.582 to percent

______________________________________________________________________

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 YOU TRY:
Convert the decimal into a percent.
l) 0.05 m) 0.83

n) 0.01 o) 1.17

II. Convert a Fraction to a Percent

Convert a Fraction to a Percent

1. Convert the fraction to a decimal.
2. Convert the decimal to a percent.

Example: Convert to a percent.

Media Lesson
Convert a Fractions to Decimals and Decimals to Percents (7:57)
View the video lesson, take notes and complete the problems below.

Fraction Decimal Percent

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 Media Lesson
Convert a Fractions to Decimals and Decimals to Percents repeating
decimals (5:56)
View the video lesson, take notes and complete the problems below.

Fraction Decimal Percent

YOU TRY:
Convert the decimal into a percent.
p) q)

r) s)

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 Media Lesson
Example 1: Relating Fractions, Decimals, and Percents (3:14)
View the video lesson, take notes and complete the problems below.

Complete the table.

Fraction Decimal Percent

0.02

85%

YOU TRY:
Complete the table below. Show all your work.

Fraction Decimal Percent

a)

b) 1.05

c) 255%

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EXERCISES
In the following exercises, convert each percent to a fraction. Simplify all fractions.
1) 4% 2) 8%

3) 52% 4) 140%

5) 42.5% 6) 104%

7) 18.4%
8)

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