Today’s problem — free all day, every step. Every day has one.
Flour stock — cakes first, then bread
A baker used 30 kg of flour to bake cakes. This was of his total flour stock. After baking the cakes, he used of the remaining flour to bake bread. How many kilograms of flour did he use for the bread?
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The baker used 15 kg of flour for the bread. Check: 30 kg is 2/5 of 75 kg; 75 kg − 30 kg = 45 kg remains; an…
The pattern behind it: Units and parts
Cut one amount into equal shares. One number tells you what a share is worth.
In this one. Use the known 30 kg for 2 equal fifth-units to fix 1 unit at 15 kg, then keep every later quantity in kilograms.
How to spot it
A single amount is split by a ratio, a fraction or a percentage. One extra number gives you the leftover, the difference, or the value of one share.
Common mistake
Children match the given number to the wrong number of shares, using the whole bar when the number covers only the leftover or the difference between two people's shares.
Try one like it
Standard Ayesha's book — pages left over the weekend Ayesha read 5/8 of a book over the weekend. She had 51 pages left to read. How many pages does the book have in total?The 33 problem patterns
All 33 patterns, one to a page — the 19 behind Primary 5 and 6 word problems, and the skills the younger years are built on. The bar model, how to spot it in the question, and the mistake children make. A booklet you can print. Free.
A PDF, and a note when new solutions go up.