#worded maths problems

When maths problems show up in real-world scenarios they are not usually in the form of 4+6. Rather than that, situations are a tad more complicated. In an effort to represent this, creators design worded maths problems in Australia enabling children to connect maths to situations in real life.

Worded maths problems present real-world maths in a highly organic manner. Almost everyone has dealt with word problems during their early school career. So, this may refresh your memory:

Examples of Maths Word Problems

Depending on the student’s learning standard word problems can be complex or simple. A few examples:

– Denise had 3 pears. Her aunt bought 8 more pears and gave them to her. At present, how many pears does Denise have altogether?

– There are 16 cake slices. Jane, William, Amelia, and Oliver all want to eat some of it. How many cake slices should each child get?

It’s clear from these examples that word problems deal with a range of operations. Be it subtraction, addition, division and multiplication, sometimes a single problem may entail two or even three operations.

Teachers need to figure out a streamlined method to help their students understand and solve worded maths problems in Australia. They can begin by instructing students on the main steps to follow while solving a worded problem. This will help to guide them in the right direction and ensure they don’t feel daunted by the problem. Let’s look at the steps students should follow in order to solve maths word problems.

Thoroughly read the maths worded problem- At the start, the child needs to read through the problem one time.

Underline the main facts - Next, the learner should go through the problem once more and mark or underline the key facts for instance the numbers mentioned or words that represent an operation.

Draw it out - When students sketch a picture of the worded maths problems it can often help them with a clearer visualisation of the same. This also serves to ensure that learners figure out the maths concepts involved in the word problem.

Find out the operation(s) - After that, the learners would have to find out the operation or operations that have to be carried out. They need to know whether they have to subtract, add, multiply or divide to get the correct answer. While sketching out the main aspects of the problem might help them come to the right conclusion, they can alternatively search for hints in the words for instance:

– Subtraction: left, take away, fewer than, subtract

– Addition: combine, add, total, brought, in all, altogether, plus, and, more

– Division: per, split, equal pieces, average, each, out of

– Multiplication: times, twice, triple, in all, total

Write down a number sentence- At this point, students would need to turn the word problem and drawings into a mathematical sentence. Accordingly, learners would have to write a sentence like 7 - 5 =.

Work out the Problem- Learners would then work out the number sentence and arrive at the answer. For example, 7 - 5 = 2.

Verify solutions- The last part would involve checking whether they got the right answer or not.

Though they can be challenging for most students, word problems are extremely important to master. Eventually, most maths in the real world arises in terms of word problems. Later in life, your students will need to be able to purchase sufficient food for a get-together, calculate the amount of tile needed for a kitchen renovation and so on. While word problems can be a challenge it is still important to offer your students several different ways to tackle this type of maths problem. Using cultural and other relevant references will make maths word problems even more interesting for students.

We’ve summarised the top teacher-approved ways to help children become more and more comfortable while solving worded maths problems in Australia.

Visualise the maths word problem

Try can make your students convert the word problems in the form of a scenario or story format. Encourage them to act out the problem (if possible), or illustrate using diagrams, pictures or models.

Using visual representations in maths word problems is a very helpful strategy. You can use images, tables, storyboards, diagrams or graphs as well. In order to prove helpful, the visual representations need to clearly indicate the relationships among the components of the worded problem and fit in important details in the problem.

Practice word problems on a daily basis

In the same way, as one would need the practice to master playing the violin, improve their serve and volley in tennis or learn a painting technique, students need the practice to gain mastery of worded maths problems in Australia. When planning the daily maths practice schedule be sure to include word problems, particularly for older students.  Each time you begin teaching a new maths concept, weave in a word problem to make it more interesting.

Get students familiar with problem-solving strategies

You can choose from several strategies available to help students learn how to handle word problems. What you must keep in mind though is that a strategy that one student is comfortable with may not work for another student. Accordingly, you can begin with a basic strategy such as Plan-Solve-Check which almost all students can grasp and over time advance the routine with different variables.

Use the CUBES technique

This is an oft-used and dependable technique to teach worded maths problems in Australia in an easy manner. It is particularly valuable for students that speed ahead and don’t pay attention to details. By forcing students to slow down and circle, underline and box relevant details this method helps students arrive at the right answer to the problem put before them.

Eliminate the numbers initially

It may sound illogical to remove the number aspect from the word problem. But when this is done during the initial stage, students are able to concentrate on what the words mean, without getting worried about the number at first. They get the chance to slow down and thoroughly understand the problem, as opposed to moving forward without really understanding the problem.