Inverse operations are mathematical operations that undo one another. Division is the inverse operation of multiplication. -2 × 6 = -12. -12 ÷ 6 then "undoes" this multiplication, leaving us with a quotient of -2. Multiplication and division follow the same rules related to signs. A negative integer multiplied by a positive integer gives us a negative product. Similarly, a negative integer divided by a positive integer gives us a negative quotient. However, unlike multiplication, division is not commutative. If you change the order of the number you're dividing and the number you're dividing by, you will get a different quotient. Find the quotient: -54 ÷ 9 =

When doing this division we need to take a couple of things into account. First, notice we are dividing a negative number into a positive number, therefore our answer must be negative.

Second, notice that 9 fits 6 time into 54, therefore:

-54/9=6

We can look at this graphically, if we have 54 squares and divided them in groups of 9, we would get 6 groups of 9 in total.

See attached picture.

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