Math Problem of the Week - Upper Elementary - June 20, 2021 to June 26, 2021

Upper Elementary: 

Question: A truck that weighs 4 tons when empty carries 1 ton of gravel. The driver unloads 500 pounds of gravel at a construction site. How many pounds do the truck and the gravel weigh in total now? 

Answer: 9,500 pounds

Solution: A ton is 2,000 pounds, so the truck itself weighs 2,000 × 4 = 8,000 pounds. The truck starts with 2,000 pounds of gravel, so after it leaves the construction site, it has 2,000 – 500 = 1,500 pounds of gravel in the back. In total, that’s 8,000 + 1,500 = 9,500 pounds.