“I know 11 6 = 66 muffins, so they could make 11 more packages.”

“So altogether, they made 71 packages of 6 muffins. I write the quotient 71 on top so I can easily see my answer. The numbers on the side are the partial quotients.”

Checking Division with Multiplication

“We can check Nila's answer,” said Romesh. “She found that from 426 muffins, they could make 71 packages with 6 muffins in each package. I think of the packages as a big array with 6 muffins in each row, like this:

There would be 71 6 muffins if I filled in the array. If 71 packages is the correct answer to Nila's division problem, then 71 6 should equal 426, since that is the number of muffins they put into packages. Let's multiply to make sure.”

Romesh multiplied using the all-partials method.
Jerome multiplied using the compact method.
“We got 426—that is the number of muffins Nila started with. So I agree that her division answer must have been correct.”

As Romesh showed, a good way to check your answer to a division problem is to multiply the quotient by the divisor and see if you get the number divided (the dividend).