Problem 357
Identify which of the following situations can be represented by 4 ÷ 
, and explain your reasoning:
a. Sue had of a room to paint in 4 hours. How much of the room must she paint each hour to finish on time?
b. Kendra has 4 yards of electrical wiring to use in setting up her science fair experiment. She needs to cut it into lengths of yard. How many pieces will she be able to make from the 4 yards?
c. A rotating video camera in the parking garage goes through 4 complete rotations in hour. How many rotations will it make in 1 hour?
d. In a local farmer’ market, of the profits are cycled bank into the local framing community. If you spend $4 there, how much of your money goes to local farmers?
Solution
b. This situation can be represented by 4 ÷¾. The number of pieces she’ll be able to make from the 4 yards is 4 ÷ ¾ = 16/3 = 5 1/3. She will have 5 pieces of ¾ of a yard, and a smaller piece of 1/4 of a yard.
c. This situation can be represented by 4÷¾. In one hour, the number of rotations will be:
4 ÷ ¾ = 16/3 = 5 1/3. This is, the camera can give 5 1/3 rotations in 1 hour.