Maths question help

[Gileswithachainsaw]

I know the answer however I need to know what method/how to explain how to get the answer appropriate for a yr 5

Tom thinks of a number

He adds half the number to a quarter of the number and makes 60

How would you teach a 10 yr old how to figure it out. As my method is probably no good

If he adds half of the number to a quarter of the number, he's made three quarters of the number.

If the knows what three quarters is, he can work out one quarter, and then the whole number.

See i just divided by three then times by four

I was just checking tht there wasn't supposed to be some kinda x+y =z thing that yr 5s start being taught about now and we were missing the point :)

Use Algebra. Where a is Tom's number.
So 1/2 a + 1/4 a = 60
3/4 a = 60
a = 80
Assuming I've understood the question right.
Hope that helps

Dd has done a bit of algebra in yr 6 but not sure about year 5

I will check with dd

As marks are also giving for workings I just wanted to check that we hadn't missed something

Thanks

I'd go with carrot cakes explanation.

I agree with carrot. I think the main thing to teach is:
accept that you don't know the answer yet and that is OK.
we'll invent a thingy to call this unknown ('a' in carrot's workings)
convert the words into Mathematical symbols
don't panic
follow mathematical logic and it all falls into place
simples

Thanks everyone

Seems I was kinda right minus the algebra

I don't think that most year 5s will be able to do that algebraically. They are used to doing problems based around adding fractions and finding a whole number if you know half/a quarter etc.

A year 5 might be more familiar with this as an 'empty box' problem (these are introduced from really early years, with the box standing for the unknown - so even a Y1 or Y2 child would be familiar with e.g. 3 + [] = 10, the number in the empty box must be 7).

So they might say
half a number plus quarter of a number is three quarters of a number.
So 3/4 of [] (empty box) = 60
One quarter of [] = 60 divided by 3 = 20
If 20 is 1/4 of the number, the whole number must be 20 x 4 = 80

Children might not always work through the steps after the 3/4 of [] = 60 numerically as I have shown. Some might draw a diagram in which they show 3/4 of a whole, label the 3/4 60 and then spot that each 1/4 must be 20 so the whole is 80. others might sport the relationship between 6 and 60, and use their knowledge that 6 is 3/4 of 8 to say that 60 is 3/4 of 80, or embark on some trial and improvement.