Ross MackellUK-qualified primary teacher · 10 min read

Your child works out 852 divided by 3 and writes 210. The real answer is 284.

They didn't forget how to divide. They forgot one tiny step: carrying the remainder. And it happens in almost every class I've taught.

I'm Ross, a UK-qualified primary teacher with over ten years in the classroom. In this guide I'll show you exactly how the bus stop method works, what to do when there's a zero in the answer, how to handle remainders, and the three mistakes to watch for. By the end you'll be able to check your child's division in seconds.

What is the bus stop method?

The bus stop method is just the school name for short division. It's called the bus stop because of how it looks: the number you're dividing sits inside the shelter, and the number you're dividing by waits outside, like someone at a bus stop.

• When it's taught: many schools start it in Year 4. The national curriculum expects children to use it by Year 5, dividing numbers up to four digits by a one-digit number. In Year 6 they use it with two-digit numbers too, and with answers that have decimal places.
• Why it matters: it's one of the core written methods on the Year 6 SATs arithmetic paper, and it's the step before long division.
• What it needs: times tables. If your child knows their tables, short division is quick. If not, every step is a struggle. If that's your child, start with my guide on how to learn times tables fast.

Short division step by step: 852 ÷ 3

Here's 852 divided by 3. Unlike adding and subtracting, division starts on the left.

1. Hundreds: how many 3s in 8? Two 3s make 6, so write 2 on top. 8 take away 6 leaves 2. That 2 is really 2 hundreds left over.
2. Carry the remainder. Write a small 2 next to the 5. The 5 becomes 25. We've swapped 2 hundreds for 20 tens. It's exchanging again, just like in column subtraction.
3. Tens: how many 3s in 25? Eight 3s make 24, so write 8 on top. 1 left over. Carry it next to the 2, making 12.
4. Ones: how many 3s in 12? Exactly four. Write 4 on top.
5. Answer: 284. Check: 284 × 3 = 852.

If the word "exchanging" is new to you, it's one of the words I explain in why maths is taught differently now.

When there's a zero in the answer

Now the one that catches children out: when the number you're dividing by won't fit at all. Here's 624 ÷ 6.

1. How many 6s in 6? One. Write 1 on top. Nothing left over.
2. How many 6s in 2? None. 2 is smaller than 6. Write 0 on top, and carry the 2 next to the 4, making 24.
3. How many 6s in 24? Four. Write 4 on top.
4. Answer: 104.

If your child writes 14, they skipped the zero. And 14 is ten times too small: 14 × 6 is only 84. The zero holds the tens place, just like in multiplication. If it doesn't fit, write a zero and carry.

Remainders: r, fraction or decimal

Sometimes it doesn't divide exactly. Here's 47 divided by 4.

1. How many 4s in 4? One. Write 1.
2. How many 4s in 7? One, with 3 left over. Write 1, and there's no next digit to carry into.
3. Answer: 11 remainder 3.

In Year 5 and 6, children learn three ways to write that remainder.

Here's what the decimal version looks like in the bus stop. Notice the decimal point lines up on top.

Remainders in word problems

In word problems, the remainder changes the answer. Try this one.

• 50 ÷ 12 = 4 remainder 2.
• But you can't leave 2 children behind. So the answer is 5 minibuses.
• Always ask: what does the remainder mean in real life? Round up, round down, or keep it?

If your child finds word problems hard, the bar model can help them see which calculation to do. I explain it with a worked example in this guide to modern maths methods.

What about dividing by a two-digit number?

In Year 6, children divide by numbers like 12 or 24. Short division still works if they write the times table down the side first. For 432 ÷ 12: 12, 24, 36. How many 12s in 43? Three (36), with 7 left over. Carry the 7 to make 72. How many 12s in 72? Six. Answer: 36. For bigger numbers, schools switch to long division, which I walk through in my SATs arithmetic guide.

3 mistakes and what to say

Mistake 1: Throwing away the remainder

• What it looks like: 210 for 852 ÷ 3. They didn't carry what was left over.
• What to say: "What's left over? Where does it go?" Point to the next digit every time.

Mistake 2: Skipping the zero

• What it looks like: 14 for 624 ÷ 6. A zero has gone missing.
• What to say: "Does it fit? If not, what goes on top?" Then check the size: is 14 groups of 6 anywhere near 624?

Mistake 3: Guessing the times table fact

• What it looks like: answers that are close but wrong, like 283 or 294, because a step like 25 ÷ 3 was guessed.
• What to say: "Write the times table down the side first." List the multiples, and there's no guessing.

And the one habit that catches all three: multiply your answer back. 284 × 3 should give you 852. If it doesn't, something's gone wrong.

A 10-minute practice routine

Same three steps I use for every method: watch, copy, practise.

1. Watch: you do one, saying the steps out loud. "How many 3s? Write it on top. Carry what's left."
2. Copy: your child does a similar one, saying the steps out loud.
3. Practise: three questions on their own. One that divides exactly, one with a zero in the answer, one with a remainder. Check each by multiplying back.

Start with two-digit numbers, then three-digit, then four-digit. Only move on when they're getting three in a row right. Here's a set to get you going.

For SATs-style practice, the government publishes free KS2 past papers. Short division questions come up on the arithmetic paper every year.

Frequently asked questions

What is the bus stop method?

The bus stop method is the name UK primary schools use for short division. The number being divided goes inside a shape that looks like a bus shelter, the number you're dividing by goes outside, and you divide one digit at a time from left to right, carrying any remainder to the next digit.

What year do children learn the bus stop method?

Many schools introduce it in Year 4. The national curriculum expects children to use short division by Year 5, dividing numbers up to four digits by a one-digit number, and to extend it in Year 6.

What do you do when the number doesn't go in?

Write a 0 on top, then carry the digit to the next column. For 624 ÷ 6, 6 doesn't go into 2, so write 0 and carry the 2 to make 24. The answer is 104, not 14.

How do you write a remainder as a fraction or decimal?

For a fraction, put the remainder over the number you divided by: 47 ÷ 4 = 11 r3 = 11 ¾. For a decimal, add a decimal point and zeros to the number inside the bus stop and keep dividing: 47 ÷ 4 = 11.75.

What is the difference between short division and long division?

In short division you carry remainders as small digits and work them out in your head. In long division you write each subtraction out underneath. Long division is usually used for dividing by two-digit numbers in Year 6.