Solving Word Problems
Note to parents: This article is written for children, but you can also use it to understand how to walk your child through a problem.
1. When you need to solve a story problem, it can be helpful to make lists of what you know. Be sure to read the problem very carefully. Every fact needs to be turned into a number or a symbol.
Example: Susan saw a mother duck. She had three yellow baby ducks and two white baby ducks. How many ducks were there altogether?
What are you trying to find out? Be careful. The problem does not ask you how many baby ducks there are. It wants to know how many ducks there are altogether, so you have to count the mother, too. If you aren't sure what problem to make, turn the words into numbers and symbols.
How many of each kind of duck are there?
Mother ducks=1
Yellow babies=3
White babies=2
1+3+2= ?
If it is hard for you to add three numbers, only add two at a time. First add the number of mother ducks and the number of yellow babies. Those are the first two numbers in the problem.
1+3=?
1+3=4
Now you know how many mother ducks and yellow babies there are. What is left? You still have to add in the number of white babies. How many white babies are there? There are two white babies. Make a problem by putting the answer to the last problem with the new number.
4+2=?
4+2=6
Now put the answer into a sentence. One mother duck, three yellow ducks and two white ducks equal six ducks altogether.
2. Check your story problem to see if it has information you don't need. Don't add in numbers that aren't important. To decide what you really need, find out what the question asks you to solve. Then look for the information that will help you solve it. If there is information you don't need, draw a light line through it, but make sure you can still see it, in case you discover you do need it after all. (Do not do this without permission from your teacher or parent.)
Example: Annie was taking a walk in a field. She saw three red flowers. She saw two rabbits. Next she saw four yellow flowers. How many flowers did Annie see?
What are you supposed to find out? The question is about the flowers, so don't add in the number of rabbits! If you don't read carefully, you might just add all the numbers and get a wrong answer.
How many red flowers are there? Red = 3
How many yellow flowers are there? Yellow = 4
How many flowers are there altogether? 3+4=7
