IXL | Use numerical expressions to solve multi-step word problems

Maureen left early in the morning to start an 18-mile hike. She hiked 8 miles on the trail before stopping for lunch. After lunch, she hiked 5 more miles.

Which expression tells you how many miles Maureen has left to hike?

–

(

)

How many miles does Maureen have left to hike?

miles

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Learn with an example

question

Rebecca volunteers at a pet shelter. During her shift, Rebecca opens a 50-pound bag of cat litter. She scoops 2 pounds of fresh litter into each of 8 litter boxes.

Which expression tells you how many pounds of cat litter are left in the bag?

(

–

)

–

(

)

How many pounds of cat litter are left in the bag?

pounds

key idea

To evaluate an expression with multiple operations, you can follow the order of

operations:

Perform operations inside parentheses.
Multiply and divide from left to right.
Add and subtract from left to right.

solution

First, find which expression tells you how many pounds of cat litter are left in the bag.

Rebecca scoops 2 pounds of fresh litter into each of 8 litter boxes. Multiply to find how many pounds of litter Rebecca scoops.

2	×	8

pounds per box		litter boxes

The bag contains 50 pounds of cat litter. Subtract the pounds of litter Rebecca scoops to find how many pounds of litter are left in the bag.

50	−	(2 × 8)

total pounds		pounds scooped

Now, evaluate the expression to find how many pounds of cat litter are left in the bag.

Perform operations inside parentheses.

–

(

)

–

Then, subtract.

–

There are 34 pounds of cat litter left in the bag.

Looking for more? Try this:

$Confetti$

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Teacher tools

Work it out

Not feeling ready yet? These can help:

H.2Write numerical expressions: two operations

H.4Evaluate numerical expressions with parentheses

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