Pre-Algebra Examples

$\sqrt{5}$

Step 1

Find the first perfect square less than $5$ .

$2^{2} = 4$

Step 2

Find the first perfect square greater than $5$ .

$3^{2} = 9$

Step 3

Since $5$ is closer to the smaller perfect square, guess $2.2$ .

$2.2$

Step 4

Check that $2.2$ is close to $5$ by squaring the guess.

${2.2}^{2} = 4.84$

Step 5

$\sqrt{5}$ is approximately equal to $2.2$ .

$\sqrt{5} \approx 2.2$