Multi-Step Word Problems

Problem-Solving Strategy

1. Read the problem carefully
2. Identify what you need to find
3. Plan which operations to use
4. Solve step by step
5. Check — does your answer make sense?

Example 1: Two Steps

A bookstore has 245 science books and 318 math books. They sell 127 books total. How many books are left?

Step 1: Find total books: $245 + 318 = 563$ Step 2: Subtract sold books: $563 - 127 = 436$ books left ✅

Example 2: Mixed Operations

A school orders 8 boxes of pencils. Each box has 24 pencils. They give 5 pencils to each of the 32 students. How many pencils are left over?

Step 1: Total pencils: $8 \times 24 = 192$ Step 2: Pencils given out: $32 \times 5 = 160$ Step 3: Pencils left: $192 - 160 = 32$ pencils ✅

Key Words

| Operation | Key Words | |-----------|-----------| | Add | total, sum, altogether, combined, in all, plus | | Subtract | difference, how many more, left over, remaining, fewer | | Multiply | times, each, every, per, groups of, rows of | | Divide | split, shared equally, per group, how many groups |

Using Estimation to Check

After solving, estimate to make sure your answer is reasonable:

• $245 + 318 \approx 250 + 300 = 550$ ✓
• $563 - 127 \approx 560 - 130 = 430$ ✓ (close to 436)

Remainders in Division

When dividing, think about what the remainder means:

• 48 students split into groups of 5: $48 \div 5 = 9$ R $3$ → You need 10 groups (round up!)
• Sharing 48 stickers among 5 friends: Each gets 9 stickers, 3 are left over

Tip: Draw a picture or diagram if the problem is confusing. Visualizing helps!