She re-did the problem herself. Let Tom = T. Jerry = (5/6)T. After Tom loses 24: (5/6)T = 2(T – 24). Multiply both sides by 6: 5T = 12(T – 24) → 5T = 12T – 288 → 288 = 7T → T = 41.142… That wasn’t a whole number. Stickers couldn’t be fractions. The problem itself was flawed.
And that, she learned, was the most solid answer of all.
She knew the rules. Mrs. Chen had said, “Answers without understanding are like a kite without wind—pretty but going nowhere.” But right now, Mira just wanted the kite. My Pals Are Here Maths 5b Workbook Answers Free
Eleven-year-old Mira stared at the problem on page 47 of her My Pals Are Here Maths 5B workbook. It wasn't just any problem. It was a nightmare dressed as a fraction: Jerry had ⅚ as many stickers as Tom. After Tom gave away 24 stickers, Jerry had twice as many as Tom. How many stickers did Jerry have?
Her heart thumped. She scrolled down. There it was: Page 47, Problem 8 – Jerry and Tom’s stickers. She re-did the problem herself
Her pencil hovered. Eraser shavings littered the table like snow. Her mother was on a work call, and her father was cooking dinner. No help was coming.
The first link promised a PDF. She clicked. A torrent of pop-ups exploded across the screen: “YOU’RE THE 1,000,000TH VISITOR!” and “DOWNLOAD NOW – NO VIRUS (LOL).” She slammed the laptop shut. After Tom loses 24: (5/6)T = 2(T – 24)
Mrs. Chen read it. Then she smiled. “You’re right. The publisher sent a correction last year. Tom should have given away 18 stickers, not 24. How did you figure this out?”
The answer was: Jerry had 80 stickers.