Translating Roman Numerals

Maggie’s Activity Pack

Name ______

Date ______

Look at a grandfather clock. You may see numerals that look like this: III or XI. Numerals like 3 and 5 are called Arabic numerals. Those written like this, X or VII, are called Roman numerals. Long ago the Romans needed to keep track of their trade. They probably first used simple marks. But, it likely was hard to keep making marks, I I I I I. So they started to use different symbols. Look at the chart below to see the Roman symbols for different numbers.

Arabic Numeral Roman Numeral A century is 100 years. A millennium 1 I is 1000 years. These English words 5 V come from Latin. Centum means 100. 10 X Mille means 1000. This helps you to 50 L remember the C stands for 100 and M 100 C stands for 1000. 500 D 1000 M

Did you notice there is not a zero in the Roman numeral system?

Writing Different Numerals Where you put a symbol is very important. If a symbol is written to the right, it means you add it. XI means 11. But if a symbol is written to the left, it means you subtract that symbol. For example, IX means 9. Look at these numerals and their meanings:

VI means 6 LX means 60 CX means 110 IV means 4 XL means 40 XC means 90 © Maggie's Earth Adventures, LLC 2007. Teachers may reproduce for classroom use.

“Translating” Roman Numerals Now you can “translate” these Roman numerals into Arabic numerals.

A. CD means ______E. CCCXXIV means ______B. VIII means ______F. CDLIII means ______C. XVII means ______G. CCMLXXI means ______D. XXXVI means ______

Writing Roman Numerals Write these numerals as Roman numerals.

A. 35 = ______E. 798 = ______B. 29 = ______F. 449 = ______C. 48 = ______G. 562 = ______D. 155 = ______

WHY?

You may ask, “Why do we need to know Roman numerals?” Look around. You will see Roman numerals in many places. Have you ever watched the SuperBowl? Have you seen a Stars Wars movie? You will see Roman numerals. The Olympic Games use Roman numerals, too. Queen Elizabeth II and other rulers include Roman numerals as part of their titles.

Just For Fun

Try writing the year in Roman numerals ______

What is your birth year in Roman numerals? ______

If you could give yourself a royal title, what would it be? Remember to use Roman numerals as you are royalty! ______© Maggie's Earth Adventures, LLC 2007. Teachers may reproduce for classroom use.

Dear Colleague, Maggie’s Executive Director and I were walking down a corridor at the regional NCTM conference when we saw something written in Roman numerals. We decided right then we needed an activity on this numbering system. Current research shows we must expand our math presentations to ensure all types of learners get excited about this subject. Students who enjoy history or literature may connect with looking at the history and structure of various numbering systems. You may want to send students on a math scavenger hunt and give them 2 weeks (or maybe even the time span of your holiday vacation) to look for different places they see Roman numerals in use. Encourage them to chart where they see this, the specific numeral and its “translation.” This will make Roman numerals meaningful. Additionally, you may want to encourage children to design their own clock, using Roman numerals. What a fun bulletin board all of these unique clocks would make! For those fascinated by history, why not send these students to research how the ancient Babylonians and Egyptians used numbers? Use ideas from Multiple Intelligences for student presentations, ranging from PowerPoints to dramatic skits. You may want to use sequencing cards with younger children to help them understand basic Roman numerals. Give each child an index card with a Roman numeral on it. Then have children line-up in the proper order. Make another set of cards with corresponding Arabic numerals on it. You have an easy center game – partners can play “Memory” and match the numerals! Happy teaching! Kathy

Answer Key: Translating Roman Numerals: Writing Roman Numerals: A. 400 A. XXXV B. 8 B. XXIX C. 17 C. XLVIII D. 36 D. CLV E. 324 E. DCCIXVIII F. 453 F. CDXLIX G. 871 G. DLXII

Goals: Students will read about the history and current use of Roman numerals. A chart is provided to help students write Roman numerals and translate Roman numerals into Arabic numerals. A variety of extension ideas are given in the Dear Colleague letter. The activity correlates with the Communication Strand of NCTM’s standards.