Long Division Year 6

Methods, worksheets and questions to help teach long division in Year 6 with confidence

Download a Free Year 6 Long Division Lesson

Teaching long division in Year 6 can feel challenging, especially when children are moving from short division into formal written methods involving larger numbers, two-digit divisors, remainders and problem-solving.

On this page, you’ll find a clear explanation of the Year 6 long division method, example long division questions for Year 6, worksheet ideas, no-remainder examples and a free ready-to-teach lesson from our Difficult Division Year 6 scheme of work.

Year 6 Long Division National Curriculum Objective

In Year 6, children are expected to:

Divide numbers up to 4 digits by a two-digit whole number using the formal written method of long division, and interpret remainders as whole number remainders, fractions, or by rounding, as appropriate for the context.

What Should Children Know Before Learning Long Division?

Before teaching long division in Year 6, children need to be secure with several key skills. These foundations make the formal written method much easier to understand.

Times tables and related division facts
Short division
Place value with 3- and 4-digit numbers
Multiples and factors
Estimating answers before calculating
Subtracting accurately within written methods

How to Teach Long Division in Year 6

The formal written method of long division follows a repeated process. Children divide, multiply, subtract, bring down and repeat until the calculation is complete.

💫 Step 1: Divide

Look at the first part of the number and decide how many times the divisor will fit.

💫 Step 2: Multiply

Multiply the divisor by the number placed above the division bracket.

💫 Step 3: Subtract

Subtract this amount from the number you are dividing.

💫 Step 4: Bring Down and Repeat

Bring down the next digit and repeat the same process until the calculation is complete.

Worked Example of Long Division in Year 6

Let's say we wanted to solve the calculation 993 ÷ 12 using the formal long division method. First, you need to set out your calculation so that the dividend (in this case, 993) is underneath the 'bus stop' and the divisor (12) is outside it, like this:

We start by looking at the first digit of the dividend. There are no 12s in 9 because 12 is bigger than 9, so we include the next digit along too. In this case, 99. So now we need to work out how many lots of 12 there are in 99:

There are 8 lots of 12 in 99 (8x12=96) so we will record the 8 above the 99:

We will then write 96 underneath 99 because this is the product of 8x12. Notice how the place value columns align:

Now we’re going to take 96 away from 99 using column subtraction which gives us 3:

Our next step is to bring the next digit down to make a two-digit number:

Now we’ll work out how many lots of 12 there are in 33. The answer is 2 so we will record this above the bar:

We’re going to write 24 under 33 because 2 x 12 = 24:

We’re going to take 24 away from 33 now using column subtraction:

Because we can’t divide 9 by 12, this is our remainder:

This means that the answer is 82 remainder 9.

Once you have cracked the method, you can use it to divide any number by a two-digit number.

Long Division Questions Year 6

When children first practise long division, it helps to begin with questions that have no remainders before moving on to calculations where the remainder needs to be interpreted.

Long Division No Remainders Year 6

672 ÷ 21
936 ÷ 24
864 ÷ 18
1,248 ÷ 26

Year 6 Long Division Questions with Remainders

845 ÷ 23
967 ÷ 31
1,357 ÷ 42
2,489 ÷ 36

Long Division Word Problems Year 6

A school has 864 pencils to share equally between 24 classes. How many pencils will each class receive?
There are 1,248 children going on a school trip. Each coach holds 52 children. How many coaches are needed?
A farmer packs 967 apples into boxes of 31. How many full boxes can be made and how many apples are left over?

Free Long Division Year 6 Lesson Download

Download Lesson 4 from our Difficult Division Year 6 scheme of work completely free.

This free lesson includes:

Detailed lesson plan
Teaching slides
Differentiated worksheets
Reasoning and problem-solving activities
Answers included
Ready-to-teach resources

Get the free Year 6 Long Division Lesson

Need More Year 6 Division Lessons?

Our Difficult Division Year 6 scheme of work gives you a full sequence of ready-to-teach lessons to help children build confidence with division methods, including long division, remainders and problem-solving.

Each lesson includes a detailed plan, slides, differentiated activities and printable resources, saving you hours of planning time.

👉 View the Full Difficult Division Scheme

Long Division Worksheets Year 6

Good long division worksheets for Year 6 should give children enough practice with the formal written method while also encouraging them to explain their thinking.

If you’re looking for a long division Year 6 worksheet PDF, our free lesson download includes printable activities and answers so you can use them straight away in class.