{"id":1149,"date":"2026-05-03T21:04:51","date_gmt":"2026-05-03T21:04:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kerimatonews.com\/?p=1149"},"modified":"2026-05-03T21:04:52","modified_gmt":"2026-05-03T21:04:52","slug":"no-one-can-figure-out-what-the-answer-really-is-for-this-tricky-problem","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kerimatonews.com\/?p=1149","title":{"rendered":"No one can figure out what the answer really is for this tricky problem"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/kerimatonews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/43-1024x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1154\" style=\"width:454px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/kerimatonews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/43-1024x1024.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/kerimatonews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/43-300x300.jpg 300w, https:\/\/kerimatonews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/43-150x150.jpg 150w, https:\/\/kerimatonews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/43-768x768.jpg 768w, https:\/\/kerimatonews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/43.jpg 1080w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A photo of a child\u2019s math worksheet has been widely shared online after it appeared to stump adults as much as students. The headline on the post claims that a mom shared her second grader\u2019s homework and \u201calmost no one can figure it out.\u201d The reason is simple:\u00a0<strong>the numbers in the word problem don\u2019t produce a whole-number answer.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The problem reads:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>There are 49 dogs<\/strong>\u00a0signed up to compete in the dog show.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>There are\u00a0<strong>36 more small dogs than large dogs<\/strong>\u00a0signed up to compete.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>How many small dogs<\/strong>\u00a0are signed up to compete?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>The Standard Way Students (and Parents) Try to Solve It<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Let:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>S = number of small dogs<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>L = number of large dogs<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">From the problem:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>S + L = 49<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>S = L + 36<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Substitute equation (2) into equation (1):<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>(L + 36) + L = 49<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>2L + 36 = 49<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>2L = 13<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>L = 6.5<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>S = 42.5<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Why Everyone Gets Stuck<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>A dog count should be a\u00a0<strong>whole number<\/strong>.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>The math gives\u00a0<strong>6.5 large dogs<\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0<strong>42.5 small dogs<\/strong>, which is impossible in real life.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>That strongly suggests\u00a0<strong>the worksheet has a typo<\/strong>\u00a0(or the numbers were copied wrong).<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>The Quick \u201cSanity Check\u201d That Explains the Issue<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">A useful rule:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>If\u00a0<strong>S \u2212 L = 36<\/strong>\u00a0(an\u00a0<strong>even<\/strong>\u00a0difference), then\u00a0<strong>S + L<\/strong>\u00a0must be\u00a0<strong>even<\/strong>\u00a0too for both numbers to be whole.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>But the total given is\u00a0<strong>49<\/strong>\u00a0(an\u00a0<strong>odd<\/strong>\u00a0number).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Even difference + odd total = halves (.5) result<\/strong>, which signals the problem is inconsistent.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>What the Question Might Have Meant (Two Fixes That Work)<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If the teacher intended whole numbers, changing just one number can fix it:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Option A: Keep the difference\u00a0<strong>36<\/strong>, change the total to\u00a0<strong>50<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Then: L = 7, S = 43<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Checks:\u00a0<strong>43 + 7 = 50<\/strong>,\u00a0<strong>43 \u2212 7 = 36<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Option B: Keep the total\u00a0<strong>49<\/strong>, change the difference to\u00a0<strong>35<\/strong>\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Then: L = 7, S = 42<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Checks:\u00a0<strong>42 + 7 = 49<\/strong>,\u00a0<strong>42 \u2212 7 = 35<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Why This Matters for Students<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When a problem has inconsistent numbers:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Kids may think they \u201ccan\u2019t do math,\u201d even though the real issue is the question.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>It\u2019s a good opportunity to teach:\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>set up equations<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>check whether answers make sense<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>recognize when a problem statement is flawed<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A photo of a child\u2019s math worksheet has been widely shared online after it appeared to stump adults as much as students. The headline on the post&#8230; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1149","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kerimatonews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1149","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kerimatonews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kerimatonews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kerimatonews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kerimatonews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1149"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/kerimatonews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1149\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1155,"href":"https:\/\/kerimatonews.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1149\/revisions\/1155"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kerimatonews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1149"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kerimatonews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1149"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kerimatonews.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1149"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}