Number Sense Blog

It doesn’t matter if it’s raining cats and dogs, nothing should keep you from daily math practice! And here at Mathnasium we make kids math tutoring fun. We help kids understand math, improve math grades, and build confidence. Our weekly word problem challenges are a great way to start your math practice at home!

Take a look at the question below. Give yourself as much time as you need to figure it out, we know you can do it!

Question: Layla takes her dog for a 20-minute walk each morning. On Monday, she takes the dog out for a walk at 7:55 AM and walks the dog for 8 minutes longer than the usual amount of time. At what time do they get back to their house?

When you’re ready with your answer, look below to check your solution against ours.

Solution: Twenty minutes after 7:55 AM is 8:15 AM, and 8 minutes after that is 8:23 AM.

You haven’t done your daily math yet? You’ve got to be kitten me! Well, you’re in luck! We have a cat-tastic word problem challenge for you this week! If you’re looking for the best math tutors to provide your child with math instruction that will bring their grades and their spirits up, you’ve come to the purrrr-fect place!

This week’s word problem gives students the opportunity to practice elementary math skills such as multiplication and counting by tens. Take a look at the question and take your time to solve the puzzle.

Question: Each of 10 cats has 10 kittens. Each of the kittens has 10 whiskers. How many kitten whiskers are there?

When you’re ready, look below to compare your solution to ours.

Solution: If each of the 10 cats has 10 kittens, then there are 10 × 10 = 100 kittens. If each kitten has 10 whiskers, then there are 100 × 10 = 1,000 whiskers.

If you’re looking for the best math tutors you should know that our Mathnasium instructors have a real appetite for math tutoring! Do you know what else has a real appetite? Piranhas! Today’s word problem challenge is all about piranhas, but don’t be afraid, math problem piranhas are the safest kind!

This fun word problem will give elementary level students the opportunity to practice skills such as fractions and decimals. Don’t be afraid to dip your toe in the water, take a look at the question below and see if you can work out the solution.

Question: Luke says he saw a piranha that was 4¾ inches long. Howard says he saw a piranha that was 4.7 inches long. Who saw the bigger piranha?

Take your time and think it over. When you’re ready, look below to compare your solution to ours.

Solution: One way to solve this problem is to write both measurements as decimals. Since ¼ is equal to 0.25, ¾ must be equal to 0.25 + 0.25 + 0.25 = 0.75. That means that a piranha that is 4¾ inches long is 4.75 inches long. Since 4.75 is greater than 4.7, Luke saw the bigger piranha.

We’re one month into 2020, how are your New Year’s resolutions coming along? If you’re having trouble with any math resolutions, consider getting tutoring after school, but also know that practicing a little bit of math every day will make a big difference as well, and we have the best kind of math practice right here with our word problem challenges!

Today’s word problem asks students to hone their elementary math skills such as fractions, addition, subtraction, and more. Read the question below and see if you can help James figure out how long it’s going to take him to reach his New Year’s goal.

Question: James has a New Year’s resolution to be able to run a mile without stopping. If he can run one-quarter of a mile without stopping by the end of January and he adds another quarter of a mile every month, then by the end of which month will James be able to run the full mile without stopping?

Take your time working it out, and when you’re ready, look below to compare your solution to ours!

Solution: There are 4 quarters in a whole, so it’ll take 4 months—January, February, March, and April—for James to be able to run a whole mile without stopping. James will be able to run the full mile by the end of April.

Q: What begins with E ends with E and has one letter in it?
A: An envelope!

People use math every day…even when writing letters! If you need to know how many stamps to buy, math tutoring after school can help give you the skills to figure that out. If you want to go beyond what you’ll find in most kids learning centers, our weekly word problem challenge is the right way to do it!

This week’s word problem gives students the opportunity to practice real-world math skills such as multiplication, division, addition and subtraction. Take a look at the question below and see if you can work out the solution. We know you can do it!

Question: Lucas had 24 stamps. He sent 4 cards with 2 stamps each. How many stamps does Lucas have left?

When you’re ready, look below to check your solution against ours.

Solution: Lucas uses 2 stamps, 4 times to send the cards. That means he uses 2 × 4 = 8 stamps. So, Lucas has 24 – 8 = 16 stamps left over.

Q: How do birds get better at math?
A: They eggs-ercise their brains with word problems!

Word problems aren’t just for the birds, they’re a great way for students to improve their math skills as well! Our weekly word problem challenges are a great way for children to supplement their tutoring after school and get in some fun logic and math practice on a regular basis.

Today’s question gives students an opportunity to practice their elementary math skills such as multiplication, division, subtraction and addition. Take a look at the question below and give it a try. Don’t just wing it, take your time thinking about it. Be sure to come back tomorrow to check your solution against ours!

Question: It takes Andrew 25 minutes to build one bird feeder. If he needs to build seven bird feeders and has already finished three, how much longer will it take Andrew to finish the bird feeders?