11/24/2024
Would this story problem frustrate your child?
A school library has 245 books about animals, 367 books about space, and 189 books about history. The librarian wants to arrange all the books equally on 9 shelves. How many books will be on each shelf, and how many books will be left over?
See the tips below to help your child solve this problem!
Tips to Help Your Child Solve this Problem:
1. Understand the Problem:
• Ask your child to restate the problem in their own words to ensure they understand it. For example, “We need to find out how many books go on each shelf and how many will not fit.”
2. Break it Down:
• Guide your child to add the total number of books first: 245 + 367 + 189.
• Ask them to write it down step by step to stay organized.
3. Use Real-World Tools:
• If your child struggles with adding, use objects like coins, counters, or draw pictures to represent the books and shelves.
4. Division with Remainders:
• Once the total is calculated, divide it by 9.
• Explain that the answer will have a remainder, as not all books will fit perfectly.
5. Relate it to Something Familiar:
• If your child doesn’t understand remainders, give a real-life example: “If you have 20 cookies and 6 plates, you’ll have 3 cookies per plate and 2 left over.”
6. Check the Work Together:
• After solving, ask your child to multiply the quotient (books per shelf) by 9 and then add the remainder to check if it matches the total number of books.
• If the numbers match, the solution is correct.
7. Encourage Perseverance:
• Let them struggle a little to build confidence but offer encouragement if they seem stuck. Say things like, “You’re so close!” or “Let’s try a different way together.”
8. Celebrate Effort, Not Just Accuracy:
• Praise them for showing their work and thinking it through, even if the answer isn’t correct at first.
MathHelpForKids
