Solutions
Awesome job on today’s word problem! Are you ready to check your answer? Look below to see if your solution matches ours.
Lower Elementary:
Answer: 18 cups
Solution: Since each of the 7 puppies eats 2 cups of food each day, all of the puppies eat 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12, 14 cups of food in a day. The piglet eats twice as much as a puppy, and twice as much as 2 cups is 4 cups. So, the baby animals eat 14 + 4 = 18 cups of food in total.
Upper Elementary:
Answer: The Alarm Clock
Solution: Since the farmer sleeps through his alarm 3 times every 12 days, he wakes up to his alarm clock 9 times every 12 days. So, the alarm clock is successful 9 ÷ 12 = 3⁄4 of the mornings it’s used. The duck wakes up the farmer 2 ÷ 3 = 2⁄3 of the mornings it quacks. Since 3⁄4 is more than 2⁄3, the alarm clock is more effective than the duck.
Middle School:
Answer: 11⁄2 inches wide × 1 inch deep × 21⁄2 inches tall
Solution: Twelve yards is 36 feet, and 18 inches is 11⁄2 feet. So, the dimensions of the farmhouse are 36 ÷ 11⁄2 = 24 times the dimensions of the dollhouse and the dollhouse’s dimensions are 1⁄24 the dimensions of the farmhouse: 1⁄24 of 3 feet (36 inches) is 11⁄2 inches. 1⁄24 of 2 feet (24 inches) is 1 inch. 1⁄24 of 5 feet (60 inches) is 21⁄2 inches.
Algebra and Up:
Answer: The Pig
Solution: The distance between the pig and the sheep closes at a rate of 11 – 3 = 8 miles per hour. The distance between the border collie and the sheep closes by 25 – 20 = 5 miles per hour. Since the distance between the pig and the sheep closes faster than the distance between the border collie and the sheep, the pig catches up faster.
