Lesson 13

Story Problems and Equations

Warm-up: Which One Doesn’t Belong: Diagrams (10 minutes)

Narrative

This warm-up prompts students to carefully analyze and compare features of tape diagrams and equations. In making comparisons, students have a reason to use language precisely (MP6). The activity also enables the teacher to hear the terminologies students know and how they talk about characteristics of tape diagrams and connect them to equations (MP2, MP7).

Launch

  • Groups of 2
  • Display image.
  • “Pick one that doesn’t belong. Be ready to share why it doesn’t belong.”
  • 1 minute: quiet think time

Activity

  • “Discuss your thinking with your partner.”
  • 2–3 minutes: partner discussion
  • Share and record responses.

Student Facing

Which one doesn’t belong?


  1. Diagram. One rectangle partitioned into two parts. First part, total length, 13. Second part, total length, question mark. Total length of rectangle, 40.

  2. Diagram. One rectangle partitioned into 2 parts. One part, total length 27. Other part, total length 13. Total length of rectangle, question mark.
  3. \(27 + \underline{\phantom{\hspace{1.05cm}}} = 40\)


  4. Diagram. Two rectangles of equal length. Top rectangle partitioned into two parts. First part, shaded, total length 27. Second part has a dashed outline, total length question mark. Bottom rectangle, shaded, total length, 40.

Student Response

Teachers with a valid work email address can click here to register or sign in for free access to Student Response.

Activity Synthesis

  • “Let’s find at least one reason why each one doesn’t belong.”
  • “Which diagram best matches the equation in C? Explain.”

Activity 1: Card Sort: Story Problems and Equations (15 minutes)

Narrative

The purpose of this activity is for students to connect story problems to the equations that represent them and to solve different types of story problems. Students identify equations with a symbol for the unknown that match a story problem and justify their decisions by describing how the equations represent the quantities and any actions in the story problem (MP4). When students analyze and connect the quantities and structures in the story problems and equations, they are thinking abstractly and quantitatively (MP2) and making use of structure (MP7).

MLR8 Discussion Supports. Display sentence frames to support discussion as students explain their reasoning to their partner: “I noticed ___ , so I matched . . .” Encourage students to challenge each other when they disagree. 
Advances: Conversing, Representing

Required Materials

Materials to Gather

Materials to Copy

  • Equations for Different Types of Word Problems

Required Preparation

  • Create a set of cards from the blackline master for each group of 24.
  • Each group of 24 needs a set of cards from the previous lesson.

Launch

  • Groups of 24
  • Give each group the story problems (Cards A–I) from the Story Problem and Diagram Cards.
  • Give one set of Equation Cards to each group of students.
  • Give each group access to base-ten blocks.
  • “Take turns reading the story problems. After one person reads, work together to find an equation that matches. When you think you have found a match, explain to your group why the cards match.”
  • “If you think that more than one card could match the story, explain the match to your group.”
  • As needed, demonstrate the activity with a student volunteer.
  • “When your group finishes, choose 2 story problems from Cards F, G, H, or I and solve them.”

Activity

  • 6 minutes: partner work time
  • Monitor for students who explain why more than one equation may match a story and how the equations match the quantities in the context of the story problem.
  • 4 minutes: independent work time

Student Facing

  1. Match each story problem with an equation. Explain why the cards match.
  2. Choose 2 story problems and solve them. Show your thinking.

Student Response

Teachers with a valid work email address can click here to register or sign in for free access to Student Response.

Advancing Student Thinking

Students may believe that only one equation could match each story. Encourage students to describe how equations match any actions in the story and whether any other equations show the same actions. If there are no actions in the story, ask students to explain why one or more cards shows the relationship between the parts and the whole. Consider providing the tape diagrams from the previous activity to support students in their explanations.

Activity Synthesis

  • Invite students to share a match for each story. 
  • Consider asking:
    • “How does the equation match the story problem?”
    • “Is there another equation that could match the story problem? Explain why or why not.”

Activity 2: Represent and Solve Story Problems (20 minutes)

Narrative

The purpose of this activity is for students to use tape diagrams and equations to represent different types of story problems within 100. In this activity, students interpret story problems and use diagrams and equations to represent the unknown quantities. Students are encouraged to solve using a method that makes sense to them.

Students may complete the parts of each problem in an order that makes sense to them. In the synthesis, students compare and connect their diagrams, equations, and methods for solving (MP2, MP7). Monitor for students who draw accurate diagrams and create different equations for the problem with Noah and Kiran’s seeds to share in the lesson synthesis.

Representation: Develop Language and Symbols. Provide students with access to a chart that shows an example of a completed tape diagram so that students can refer to it as they work on the activity. Supports accessibility for: Visual-Spatial Processing, Memory, Attention

Required Materials

Materials to Gather

Launch

  • Groups of 2
  • Give each group access to base-ten blocks.

Activity

  • “Now you get a chance to draw diagrams and write equations that represent story problems.” 
  • “Read the story carefully. Then solve each problem and show your thinking.”
  • 8 minutes: independent work time
  • 5 minutes: partner discussion
  • Monitor for students who: 
    • use an addition equation to represent Andre’s seeds
    • subtract to find the number of seeds Andre won using a base-ten diagram or equations.

Student Facing

  1. Diagram. One rectangle partitioned into two parts. First part, labeled seeds at start, total length, question mark. Second part, labeled, seeds won, total length, 36. Total length of rectangle, 64.

    Lin played a game with seeds. She started the game with some seeds. Then she won 36 seeds. Now she has 64 seeds. How many seeds did Lin have at first?

    1. Write an equation using a question mark for the unknown value.

    2. Solve. Show your thinking using drawings, numbers, or words.

  2. Andre started a game with 32 seeds. Then he won more seeds. Now he has 57 seeds. How many seeds did Andre win?

    1. Label the diagram to represent the story.

      Diagram. One rectangle partitioned into 2 parts. 1 part, labeled, seeds at start. Total length, blank. Other part, labeled, seeds won. Total length, blank. Total length of rectangle, blank.
    2. Write an equation using a question mark for the unknown value.

    3. Solve. Show your thinking using drawings, numbers, or words.

  3. Diego gathered 22 seeds from yellow flowers and 48 seeds from blue flowers. How many seeds did he gather in all?

    1. Label the diagram to represent the story.

      Diagram. Rectangle partitioned into 2 parts. All labels and total lengths blank.

    2. Write an equation using a question mark for the unknown value.

    3. Solve. Show your thinking using drawings, numbers, or words.

      blue and yellow flowers.
  4. Noah and Kiran gathered 92 pumpkin seeds. Noah gathered 53 pumpkin seeds. How many seeds did Kiran gather?

    1. Draw a diagram to represent the story.

    2. Write an equation using a question mark for the unknown value.

    3. Solve. Show your thinking using drawings, numbers, or words.

Student Response

Teachers with a valid work email address can click here to register or sign in for free access to Student Response.

Advancing Student Thinking

If students draw their own diagrams, but do not label the quantities, consider asking:
  • “What are the different things that you can count in the story? How does your diagram show these things?”
  • “What could you add to your diagram to help someone make connections to the story?”

Activity Synthesis

  • Invite a previously identified student to share their completed tape diagram and the addition equation for Andre's seeds.
  • Invite a previously identified student to share the way they used subtraction to find how many seeds Andre won.
  • “How are _____’s equation and _____’s method the same? How are they different?” (They both use the same numbers. _____’s method is a way to find the unknown value in the equation. They are different because the equation is addition, but the method shows subtraction).
  • “Does _____’s method using subtraction match the actions in the story problem? Explain why or why not.” (No. The story tells about starting with some seeds and getting more seeds. That is addition. But you can use subtraction to find the value, since there is an unknown addend.)
  • “Sometimes it might be better to use addition or subtraction equations to represent the actions that are happening in a story. But you can always use addition or subtraction to find an unknown addend.”

Lesson Synthesis

Lesson Synthesis

Display student work samples for the story about Noah and Kiran’s seeds that show an accurate diagram, an addition equation that represents the story, and a subtraction equation that represents the story.

“Do both equations match the story and the diagram? Explain.” (Yes. Each equation shows the total amount of seeds and Noah’s seeds. The question mark shows Kiran’s seeds. You could show how Noah’s seeds and Kiran’s seeds are related with addition or subtraction.)

“Which helps you make sense of a story—a diagram, an equation, or both?”

Cool-down: Match the Equation (5 minutes)

Cool-Down

Teachers with a valid work email address can click here to register or sign in for free access to Cool-Downs.