Guide to Solving
Number Stories
Math…no problem!
What do you know?
• Read the question carefully.
• Make sure you only use
information you need.
• Look for key words (poster)
What do you want to find
out?
• Notice facts.
• Find out what the question is.
• Decide if there are one or more
parts to solve.
• Work in order to answer the WHOLE
question.
What will you do?
• Draw a picture or a
diagram?
Example:
There were four
girls standing in a line.
They each had two legs
and two feet. How
many legs and feet did
they have altogher?
LABEL YOUR DIAGRAM
WITH NUMBERS TO
HELP SOLVE!
Add? Subtract?
Multiply? Divide?
Answer the question
•
Can you write a number model to show
what you did?
Example: There were 8 bags of chips. Marcy
bought 3 bags. How many bags were left?
•
NUMBER MODEL: 8-3=5
– “box it”---draw a box around number
model.
Check. Ask: “Does my answer
make sense? How do I know?
• Look at the answer you got. Does it
look right? For instance, if you are
adding the numbers, the final sum
should be bigger than the two
numbers added.
• When you are sure CIRCLE your
answer(s).
We will practice using
certain strategies
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Guess and check
Draw a picture
Make a list
Choose the information you need
Draw a graph or diagram
Look for a pattern
Work backwords
– DEAN: the meat and potatoes of it all!