General approach in problem solving?
1. Understand the problem.
2. Identify what are the given and what is asked.
3. Define the variables or unknown.
Note: The unknown is usually the least described in the problem
4. Set up an equation or formula for the problem.
5. Solve for the unknown.
AGE PROBLEM
Example 1:
John is 3 times as old as his son. In 10 years, John will be twice as old as his son. What are their ages now?
▪ What is asked: The present age of John and his son.
▪ Define the variables: John is 3 times as old as his son
Let: x - the son’s present age (the son’s age is the unknown because it is the least described)
3x – John’s present age
▪ Set up the equation: In 10 years, John will be twice as old as his son.
3x +10 = 2(x + 10)
Solution: 3x +10 = 2(x + 10)
3x +10 = 2x + 20
3x – 2x = 20 -10
x = 10 (son’s present age) ; 3x = 3(10) = 30 ( John’s present age)
Let’s Practice!
1. Sam is 6 years older than his brother, Kim. In 5 years, Sam will be three times as old as Kim. How old are they now?
▪ What is asked: The present age of Sam and Kim.
▪ Define the variables: Sam is 6 years older than his brother, Kim
Let: x - the present age of Kim (the son’s age is the unknown because it is the least described)
x+6 – Sam’s present age
▪ Set up the equation: In 5 years, Sam will be three times as old as his son
(x + 6) + 5 = 3(x + 5)
Solution:
(x + 11) = 3(x + 5)
x + 11 = 3x + 15
x - 3x = 15 -11
-2x = 4
x = 2 (since there is no negative age, just omit the negative sign)
x = 2 (Kim’s present age) ; x + 6 = 2 + 6 = 8 (Sam’s present age)
WORK PROBLEM
If Tom can paint a room in 3 hours and Jane can paint the same room in 5 hours, how long will it take them to paint the
room together?
▪ What is asked: number of hours Tom and Jane can paint the room together
▪ Define the variables:
Let: x - be the time it takes them (Tom and Jane) to paint the room together.
Note: Tom's work rate is 1/3 of the room per hour Note: How to convert 1.88 hours to hours
and minutes
Jane's work rate is 1/5 of the room per hour.
Multiply the decimal part by 60 mins,
▪ Set up the equation: .88 x 60 mins = 52.8 = 53 minutes
1/3 + 1/5 = 1/x
x = 15/8 = 1.88 hours or 1 hour and 53 mins.
Therefore, it takes them 15/8 hours, or 1 hour and 53minutes for them to paint the room together.
Let’s Practice!
1. John can mow a lawn in 3 hours, and Jack can mow the same lawn in 4 hours. How long will it take them to mow the
lawn together?
What is asked: number of hours John and Jack can mow the lawn together
Define the variables:
Let: x - be the time it takes them (John and Jack) to mow the lawn together.
Note: John’s mowing rate is 1/3 of the lawn per hour
Jack’s mowing rate is 1/4 of the lawn per hour.
1 1 1
▪ Set up the equation: 3 + 4 = x
Solution:
1 1 1
+ =
3 4 x
1 1 1
(12x ) ( 3 + 4 ) = ( x ) (12x) (multiply both sides of the equation with the LCD, 12x)
12x 12x 12x
= ( 3 + 4 ) = ( x ) = 4x + 3x = 12 = 7x= 12 = x = 12/7 hours = 1.71 hours (number of hours for Jack and John
to finish mowing the lawn together)
DISCOUNT PROBLEM
A store is offering a 20% discount on all items. A customer buys a shirt for $25, pants for $35, and shoes for $50. How much
does the customer save in total with the discount?
Solution:
To find out how much the customer saves, we first need to calculate the price of each item after the discount.
For the shirt, 0.2 x $25 = $5. So the customer pays $25 - $5 = $20 for the shirt.
For the pants, 0.2 x $35 = $7. So the customer pays $35 - $7 = $28 for the pants.
For the shoes, 0.2 x $50 = $10. So the customer pays $50 - $10 = $40 for the shoes.
Adding all the discounts: $5 + $7 + $10 = $22
Therefore, the customer saved a total of $22 with the 20% discount.
MIXTURE PROBLEM
Maria has a jar of coins that contains only 10-peso coins and 5-peso coins. The total value of the coins in the jar is 250
pesos, and there are a total of 30 coins in the jar. How many of each type of coin does Maria have in her jar?
Using a substitution method to solve for x and y
Let: x be the number of 10-peso coins in the jar
y be the number of 5-peso coins.
x + y = 30 (since there are 30 coins in the jar)
10x + 5y = 250 (since the total value of the coins in the jar is 350 pesos)
Solving this system of equations, we can find the values of x and y:
x + y = 30 (equation 1)
10x + 5y = 250 (equation 2)
Using equation 1, equate it to either x or y. This time I will choose to equate it to x. Thus, the equation will become,
x = 30 – y (equation 3) or y = 30 – x (equation 3)
Substitute equation 3 to equation 2, we have:
10x + 5y = 250 (equation 2)
x = 30 – y (equation 3)
Substituting,
10 (30 – y ) + 5y = 250
300 -10y + 5y = 250
-10 y +5y = 250 -300
-5y = -50
−5𝑦 50
= −5 (divide both sides of the equation by -5, to solve for y)
−5
y = 10 (there are 10 pieces of 5-peso coins)
Solving for x, we can use equation 3 to substitute y=10 because it is more simple to operate. We have,
x = 30 – y
x = 30 -10
x = 20 (there are 20 pieces of 10-peso coins)
Checking:
10x + 5y = 250
10 (20) + 5(10) = 250
200 +50 = 250
250 = 250
Activity 1: Solve the following problems and provide a complete solution. Label your final
answers with the appropriate unit.
1. Mark is 8 years older than Jane. In 4 years, Mark will be twice as old as Jane. How old
are they now?
2. A machine can fill a water tank in 8 hours. Another machine can fill the same tank in 12
hours. How long would it take both machines working together to fill the tank?
3. A store is offering a 25% discount on all items. A customer buys a sweater for $40 and a
pair of jeans for $60. The store charges a 6% sales tax on all purchases. What is the total
cost of the purchase, including the discount and sales tax?
Note: A sales tax is a tax that is added to the price of goods or services when they are sold to consumers. The sales tax is
usually a percentage of the total price of the item or service, and the exact percentage can vary depending on the location
and the type of item or service being sold.
