Lesson 1 of 3 A percent is a ratio that compares a number to 100. The symbol % is used to show a percent. Keep reiterating this point to students. Ideally, percent’s should come at the end of RP lessons and after NS.1 so students have worked with strip diagrams before. Provide benchmarks for strip diagrams determined by the factor pairs that make 100. Factor pairs of 100, number of (boxes) x (percentage worth of each box) 1x100, 2x50, 4x25, 5x20, and 10x10. This lesson includes: Lesson Problem