Grade 8 · Algebra & functions

Scientific notation practice

Scientific notation is a grade 8 math skill aligned to Common Core standard 8.EE.A.3: use numbers expressed in the form of a single digit times an integer power of 10 to estimate very large or very small quantities. Below are 8 practice questions with answers and step-by-step explanations, drawn from the 15 scientific notation problems our math games drill.

CCSS 8.EE.A.315 questions in the bank

Sample questions

Try 8 for free

Question 1easy

$9 \times 10^5$ is how many times as large as $3 \times 10^2$ ?

$\dfrac{9 \times 10^5}{3 \times 10^2} = 3 \times 10^3 = 3{,}000$ .

Question 2easy

$0.0075 = c \times 10^{-3}$ . What is $c$ ?

Moving the decimal in $0.0075$ three places right gives $7.5$ , so $c = 7.5$ .

Question 3easy

Write $4500$ as $a \times 10^n$ where $1 \le a < 10$ . What is $n$ ?

$4500 = 4.5 \times 10^3$ , so $n = 3$ .

Question 4easy

$(2 \times 10^3)(3 \times 10^4) = 6 \times 10^n$ . What is $n$ ?

Multiply coefficients ( $2 \cdot 3 = 6$ ) and add exponents: $3 + 4 = 7$ , so $n = 7$ .

Question 5easy

What is $3.2 \times 10^4$ in standard form?

$3.2 \times 10^4 = 32{,}000$ .

Question 6easy

$93{,}000{,}000 = c \times 10^7$ . What is $c$ ?

$9.3 \times 10^7 = 93{,}000{,}000$ , so $c = 9.3$ .

Question 7easy

Write $720{,}000$ as $a \times 10^n$ where $1 \le a < 10$ . What is $n$ ?

$720{,}000 = 7.2 \times 10^5$ , so $n = 5$ .

Question 8easy

$(3 \times 10^2)(3 \times 10^3) = 9 \times 10^n$ . What is $n$ ?

Coefficients multiply to $9$ ; exponents add: $2 + 3 = 5$ , so $n = 5$ .

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Math games for Grade 8

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Blaster Gate game

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Tests that cover scientific notation:

SBAC i-Ready ACT Aspire NM-MSSA MCAP

More Grade 8 skills:

Similar triangle shadows (SAT)Two-way tables Modeling linear situations Pythagorean theorem Scatterplots and trend lines Slope formula Linear coefficient interpretations Polygon angle formulas All Grade 8 practice →

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