Problem Solving Strategies
What strategy is best?
Task
As we go through the strategies you are going to write the
name of the strategy down, and if you want to an illustration
to help you remember.
There are 12 Problem Solving Strategies that can help us
solve a problem!
When you are given a problem, it is handy to have a variety
of strategies to help you work it out. You will already be
using some of them without knowing.
Problem Solving Strategies
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Draw a Picture
Make a Table
Write a Number Sentence
Guess and Check
Look for a Pattern
Use Materials
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Make a Model
Act it out
Explore Possibilities
Make a List
Work Backwards
Solve a Simpler
Problem
Reminders
● For each question:
o Write the strategy down
o Work out the answer on your own whiteboard/paper
o Hold it up when you get an answer
● Remember, word problems have full sentence answers not just numbers
1. Draw a Picture
Emme and Makayla
are making pizzas. If
one pizza has 6
whole mushrooms on
it, how many
mushrooms they need
to make 6 pizzas?
Work:
2. Make a Table
Dad gives you $50
for doing your chores
a month. how much
will you have at the
end of the year?
Work
Month
Allowance
January
$50
February
$100
March
$150
April
$200
3. Write a Number
Sentence
A) Nathan has three times
as many skateboards as his
sister. his sister has 3
skateboards.
B) Nathan’s mom takes
four skateboards away and
then buys him a new one.
How many skateboards
does Nathan have?
Work:
A- 3 X S = N, S= 3
3 x 3 = 9, N = 9
B- N - 4 + 1 = ?
9 - 4 + 1 = 5 +1 = 6
4. Guess and Check
Mrs. Moore decided to
take all her children to see
a movie. The tickets cost
$5 for children and $12 for
adults. She spent $124.
How many children and
how many adults went to
the movies?
Work:
Children ($5)
Adults($12)
Total Cost
10 x 5 = $50
1 x 12 = $12
$50+$12 = $62
30 x 5 = $150
1 x 12 = $12
150 + 12 = $162
5. Look for a Pattern
You arrange tennis balls in triangular
shapes as shown. How many balls
will there be in a triangle that has five
rows. * Can you find a rule to explain
the pattern?
Work:
# of Rows
# of Balls
1
1
2
3
3
6
4
5
6. Use Materials
Mrs. Guillory has four
squares of yellow
cardboard. She asked her
class to join them all so
they are connected by at
least one edge. How many
different ways can you do
this?
Work:
7. Make a Model
Jake has 21 bricks to build
a wall in a pattern of 1, 2,
3, 4 … bricks high. How
many bricks long can he
make the wall?
Work:
8. Act it out
Four students measured
their heights. Nick was
taller than Julie, but not as
tall as Luke. Ashlynn was
taller than Luke. Write
down their names in order
of their heights, from
shortest to tallest.
Work:
9. Explore Possibilities
Susie the snake has up to
20 eggs. She counted her
eggs in fours. She had
three left over. She counted
them in fives. She had 4
left over. How many eggs
has Susie got?
Work:
Group of 5 4 leftover
Groups of 4 3 leftover
10. Make a List
The letters ABC, can be
put into different order.
How many different
combinations of the letters
ABC can you make?
Work:
ABC
ACB
BCA
BAC
CBA
CAB
11. Working Backwards
Work:
Shane got on the school bus. At
that stop after Shane’s, 7
students got on. Five students
got on the bus at the next stop.
At the last stop before school, 9
students got on. When the bus
arrived at school, 38 students got
off. How many students when
already on the bus when Shane
got on?
Got off : 38 Students
Got on : 1+7+5+9 = 22
students
Before Shane : 38-22 =
16 students
12. Solve a Simpler
Problem
A problem may seem very difficult. It may
contain large numbers or appear to require many
steps to solve. Instead of solving the given
problem, solve a similar but simpler problem.
Look for lesser numbers, patterns, and
relationships. Then use what you’ve learned to
solve the original problem.
The houses on Main Street are
numbered consecutively from
1-100. How many house
numbers contain at least one
digit 7?
Work: Change to a
simpler problem Work out for houses
1-50.
1-10 > 7
11 - 20 > 17
21- 30 > 27
NOW WE CAN
SOLVE ANY
PROBLEM.