Lower Elementary:
Question: Mikey and his brothers Donnie, Raph, and Leo are comparing their heights. Leo’s height is between Raph’s and Donnie’s. If Raph is the second shortest, who is the shortest?
Answer: Mikey
Solution: If Raph is the second shortest and Leo’s height is between Raph’s and Donnies, then both Leo and Donnie are taller than Raph. That means that Mikey must be the shortest.
Upper Elementary:
Question: Three-fourths of a cannister of toxic ooze spills into a sewer. If 4½ fluid ounces of ooze is left inside the cannister, then how much ooze does the cannister hold in total?
Answer: 18 fluid ounces
Solution: Since ¾ of the cannister of ooze spilled, that means that 4½ fluid ounces is ¼ of the total amount of ooze the cannister can hold. So, the cannister can hold 4½ × 4 = 18 fluid ounces in total.
Middle School:
Question: April is deciding what kind of job she should take. She’s deciding between jobs as a lab assistant (which will pay her $48.00 for 4 hours of work), a computer programmer (which will pay her $65.00 for 5 hours of work), and a reporter (which will pay her $69.00 for 6 hours of work). Which job should she take if she wants to earn the most money per hour?
Answer: Computer Programmer
Solution: The lab assistant job pays $48.00 ÷ 4 = $12.00 per hour. The computer programmer job pays $65.00 ÷ 5 = $13.00 per hour. The reporter job pays $69.00 ÷ 6 = $11.50 per hour. So, if April wants to earn the most money per hour, she should take the job as a computer programmer.
Algebra and Up:
Question: A 16-inch pizza is cut into 6 equal slices. If 4 consecutive pieces are taken and eaten, then what is the area taken up by the remaining slices?
(Hint: Pizzas are measured by their diameters.)
Answer: 21â…“π square inches
Solution: Before any slices are eaten, the pizza takes up πr2 = 64π square inches. Since 4 out of 6 slices were eaten, that leaves 2 slices, so â…“ of the pizza is left over. That means that the area taken up by the remaining two slices is â…“ × 64π = 21â…“π square inches.
