Wacky Word Problems
Chapter One
The Magic of
Word Problems
When you're not in class, how often do you ask yourself, "What is 821 +
53 + 444?" or "What is 16 × 4?" or "What is 32 divided by 8?" Probably
not very often, unless you're reading your homework out loud. So why
study math? Well, although you may not realize it, you answer these kinds of
questions in word problems all the time.
For example, your parents are driving you to your favorite amusement
park. You sit in the back seat, wondering, How long until we get there? If your
parents tell you the distance to the park and how fast the car is going, can
you figure it out? This is a word problem!
You stop at a restaurant after school. You look at the money in your
pocket and wonder, Do I have enough to get a meal and dessert? You know the
prices from the menu. Can you figure it out? Another word problem!
You get your spelling test back. Your score is 17 out of 21. You ask yourself,
What percentage did I get correct? You know you'll get a B or better if you
got more than 80 percent right. Can you figure it out? Yep, that's a word
problem.
You go clothes shopping, and your favorite sto ... read full excerpt from Wacky Word Problems: Games and Activities That Make Math Easy and Fun ebook
