Solutions
Great 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: $3.90
Solution: Zachary earned 15¢, 6 times for the books. That’s 15, 30, 45, 60, 75, 90¢ for all 6 of the books. He earned $1.00, 3 times for the toys. That’s $3.00 for all 3 of the toys. So, altogether, Zachary earned $0.90 + $3.00 = $3.90.
Upper Elementary:
Answer: 8:35 p.m.
Solution: The amount of time it takes for all of the students to finish their songs is 8 × 5 = 40 minutes. Since they have to finish the recital by 9:15 p.m., we count back 40 minutes before 9:15 p.m. to 8:35 p.m.
Middle School:
Answer: 6 inches
Solution: The length of the tree’s shadow is two-thirds the height of the tree. So, the length of the songbird’s shadow is two-thirds its height; 2 inches is two-thirds of 3 inches, so the songbird must be 3 inches tall. That means that the squirrel is 6 inches tall because 6 inches is twice as tall as 3 inches.
Algebra and Up:
Answer: They earned $0 in April.
Solution: This function is a parabola that opens upward, so the lowest value is at the vertex. To find the month, we find –b ⁄2a = – –8 ⁄2(1) = 8⁄2 = 4. So the vertex is at t = 4, which represents the month of April. To find how much they earned, we set t = 4 and solve: 42 – 8(4) + 16 = 16 – 32 + 16 = 0. So, the cat-sitting business earned $0 in April.
