One of the most useful ways to solve word problems effectively is knowing where to start. Many students struggle with word problems not because they don’t understand the math, but because they don’t know which sentence to focus on first.
The key? Start from sentences that has the words “equal”, “twice”, “three times”, “more than”, or “fewer than”.
If there are more than one to choose from, then start from the first one.
If the words are not in the word problems, then start from the first line. Once you start from the correct sentence, solving the problem becomes much easier.
Let’s look at some examples to illustrate this method.
Example 1: Sandy and Janice’s Money
Problem: Sandy had $1032 and Janice had $680. After each of them had spent an equal amount of money, Sandy had 3 times as much money left as Janice. How much did each of them spend?
Where to Start: Start from “Sandy had 3 times as much money left as Janice.”
- Draw a model to represent the money left.
- Let Janice’s remaining money be 1 unit. Then Sandy’s remaining money is 3 units.
- Work out how much they both spent by subtracting from their original amounts.
Once this is set up, the rest of the problem becomes straightforward.
Example 2: Curry Puff Problem
Problem: Amy, Betty, and Carol made 115 curry puffs. Betty made 25 more curry puffs than Amy. Carol made twice as many curry puffs as Betty. How many did Carol make?
Where to Start: Start from “Carol made twice as many curry puffs as Betty.”
- Represent Betty’s curry puffs as one unit.
- Carol’s amount is 2 units.
- Use the given information about Betty making 25 more than Amy to set up an equation.
Once this setup is done, you can solve the problem step by step.
Example 3: Books on Shelves
Problem: Keith put 525 books on three shelves. There were 128 books on the third shelf. The second shelf had 37 more books than the first shelf. How many books were on the first shelf?
Where to Start: Start from “37 more books” on the second shelf compared to the first.
- Assign the first shelf’s books as one unit.
- The second shelf has 37 more than the first shelf.
- Use the total number of books to form an equation.
Once you structure the problem like this, you can systematically solve for the unknown.
Example 4: Aini, Cali, and Bala’s Money
Problem: Aini, Cali, and Bala shared some money. The total amount Aini and Bala received was $1250. The total amount Aini and Cali received was $830. Bala’s amount was four times as much as Cali’s amount. How much did Aini receive?
Where to Start: Start from “Bala’s amount was four times as much as Cali’s amount.”
- Represent Cali’s amount as 1 unit.
- Bala’s amount is 4 units.
- Use the total sums provided to set up equations for solving Aini’s amount.
Once this foundation is laid out, working out the answer becomes much more manageable.
The Power of Starting from the Right Sentence
When tackling word problems, always look for statements that compare quantities—whether it’s equal amounts, twice, three times, more than, or fewer than. These are the best places to start drawing a model or setting up an equation.
If you can identify the right starting point, you’ve already won more than half the battle! Try this approach in your next word problem, and you’ll see a big difference in how quickly and accurately you can solve them.
Want More Practice?
If you found this helpful, try applying this method to more word problems. Let us know in the comments how this strategy worked for you!
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