The story Problem

 When the teacher says open your text to page 236, and all you see is word problems,
 or story problems as they are often called, how do you feel.  Does your stomach begin
 to turn, do you brake out in hives, or do you just want to close the book.  Sometimes
 I wonder if your teachers felt the same way, when it came time  for them to teach you
 how to solve them.

 Is there a magic way to solve them, NO!


However, there are some strategies to help you out. 


             1.  READ THE PROBLEM

You will not know what the problem is about unless you read it.  Math has to be read,
not stared at.  It is up to teachers, from day one to force students to read everything in
their Math book.  Do not try to make it easy by telling them they do not have to read.
Remember, life is a story, not a simple equation to solve.


           2.  DECIDE WHAT THE EXACT
        QUESTION THAT IS BEING
        ASKED.  WRITE IT DOWN!

Here we have to read carefully.  The question is not always at the end of the problem.
Sometimes the question is embedded in the problem, and often there is more than one
question.  As you write it down you should be putting yourself into the problem,
becoming a part of the story.  The closer we are to understanding the question, the
closer we are to the answer.


          3.  DRAW A PICTURE OR DIGRAM


This is often what makes it easy to solve.  In problems that deal with distance, rate,
and time, after making the chart you will realize that it is all about the distance.
Similar charts can be made with chemistry, money, and age problems.

         4. CHOSE AN OPERATION OR
       MAKE AN EQUATION TO
       SOLVE AND FOLLOW
      THROUGH


Doing this step is all about your abilities in the basics.  Once you are here
you are 80% done.  Following through means that once you have a solution,
it needs to make sense.  Just because you have an answer does not mean
you are correct.  Reread the problem, and see that it fits.


         5.  WRITE YOUR ANSWER IN A
       SENTENCE ANSWERING THE
       QUESTION OR QUESTIONS 
       YOU WROTE AT THE BEGINNING


The question is a story, the answer deserves to be a sentence.  If the question
is how many miles did Harvey travel, your answer needs to be; Harvey traveled
x number of miles.  This way students answer questions in Math the same way
they do in History or Science.