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Question P4–P5–P6 Constant total

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Stickers — Mei and Priya end up equal

Mei had 5 times as many stickers as Priya. After Mei gave 40 stickers to Priya, the two girls had the same number of stickers. How many stickers did Mei have at first?

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About this method

Constant total

Money moves between two people, so their total never changes.

In this one. A transfer keeps the combined total unchanged, so the equal final amounts re-split the original 6 units into 3 units each; Mei's 2-unit drop is the 40 stickers transferred.

Before4 shares in allAlithis one movesBenAfter4 shares in allAliBenarrived here

How to spot it

One person gives, sells or loses an amount to the other, and nobody outside the two people gains or loses anything.

Common mistake

Children draw different totals before and after, or forget that moving an amount from one person to the other changes the gap between them by twice that amount.

Practise a similar question

Standard Ali had 3 times as many marbles as Ben. After Ali gave 24 marbles to Ben, the two boys had the same number of marbles. How many marbles did Ali have at first?
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