Real Life Middle School Math Word Problems Worksheets
How do you write word problems for middle schoolers? As a math teacher, one of the hardest jobs is to write word problems for students. Not only are they difficult to jot down, but students are also scared at the sight of word problems. With word problems, children identify the real-world implications of the information that they are learning in the classroom. They also help in developing critical thinking skills. One of the best factors that can help you in writing an excellent word problem is to analyze and solve them yourself first. This will also help you determine which method is the best for the students. The first step in writing a word problem is creating the main character and the kind of object that exist within it. The numbers that you will include, later, are simply window dressing. For example, Alexa has a set of red balloons. How about we say he has 6 balloons? Move on to creating a secondary character, just like the first one with an object and quantity. For example, Steve has 11 purple balloons. At the end of the word problem, write down a question such as, "What is the total sum of the balloons they have?" When you start using word problems, keep them simple in the beginning, and then gradually switch to more complex word problems. Once they get how to grasp the problems, it will be easier to solve the complex problems as well. This page contains an excellent selection of word problems students will see in real life at the middle school level.
Aligned Standard: Grade 7 Expression & Equations - 7.EE.B.3
- Comparing Surveys Step-by-step Lesson- You are asked to compare surveys. It's important that kids see this and understand that surveys are just a glimpse at the truth.
- Guided Lesson - Working hard on problems many people deal with everyday.
- Guided Lesson Explanation - I find visuals are really helpful. They encourage kids to draw out their own.
- Practice Worksheet - We throw everything at you, but the kitchen sink. I'll make sure to get the sink in the next worksheet I create.
- Matching Worksheet - The degree symbol really gives that one away. Sorry about that one.
- Answer Keys - These are for all the unlocked materials above.
Homework Sheets
These are the types of problems that matter. We should have more of these in the standards.
- Homework 1 - Three students conduct the same survey about the amount of tea people drink in the morning. The results of the number of people who drink tea are shown below. In which survey did greatest percentage of people drink the tea?
- Homework 2 - Jacob makes $45 an hour. He gets a 15% raise. He works 60 hours a week. How much extra will he make this week as a result of his raise?
- Homework 3 - You want to place a mat that is 4 inches long in the center of a table that is 9 inches wide. How far from the edge will you place the mat?
Practice Worksheets
The picture frame and table cloth problems give adults trouble. No wonder many of my friends pictures aren't level.
- Practice 1 - A shop keeper sold some products. The sales of the products sold are shown below. Which product had the greatest percentage of its inventory sold?
- Practice 2 - Denny wants to place a computer that is 22 1/2 inches long in the center of a table. The table is 35 3/4 inches wide; about how far from the edge will Denny place the computer?
- Practice 3 - Britney gets 50 muffins an hour for dusting. She gets a 5% raise. She dusts for 90 hours this week. How many more muffins will she get this week as a result of her raise?
Math Skill Quizzes
I found that most middle school students have trouble with these problems when they first see them.
- Quiz 1 - Jacob goes to the stationery shop and purchases 15 of the 25 pens they had in stock. What percentage of the stock of pens in the store did he purchase?
- Quiz 2 - Smith goes to the market and purchases some products. Which product did he purchase the greatest percentage of the stock?
- Quiz 3 - Dimpy works for toffees. He receives 100 toffees an hour for his work. If he makes a drawing on his break, he gets an extra 10% bonus. Dimpy works for 20 hours and makes the drawing during his break. How many toffees is Dimpy owed?
Example Problem
Steve is a cook at the local Big Boy. He is paid $21 per hour. He has done well and given a 15% raise. Steve works for 40 hours each week. How much more money will Steve make this week because of his raise?
Solution to Problem
To solve this problem, we would need to find the difference between the amount of money he would make in a 40 hour work week before and after the raise. We can restate this as: Weekly Pay After Raise – Weekly Pay Before Raise. Now we just need to calculate those two variables and then find the difference. His pay before the raise would be the hourly rate x the hours he works:
$21 x 40 hours = $840. This is his pay before the raise.
His new hourly pay rate would be the starting multiplied by an additional 15%. We can signify the additional 15% by multiplying the current rate by the decimal value: 1.15. The 1 indicates his current rate and the additional 0.15 accounts for his raise. Here is the math for that:
$21 x 1.15 = $24.15. This is his new pay rate.
To determine how much he makes at his current rate, we multiple that by the number of hours (40) he has worked.
$24.15 x 40 = $966. This is the amount he collects a week, at his new pay rate.
The problem asked us to find how much more he is making now. We stated this previously as:
Weekly Pay After Raise – Weekly Pay Before Raise. We just put the values that we have already calculated in there:
$966 - $840 = $126.
So, Steve makes an additional $126 every week because of his new rate of pay.
Habits of Great Math Problem Solvers
It is often difficult to consciously improve our math skills without coming across some level of frustration. There are some strong tendencies that you will find are common to most people that are considered strong problem solvers. The first habit is just consistency in practice. People with solid math skills are not that way because they did one problem, they literally do dozens, if not hundreds. The more repetition you get, the better. When you make errors, which you will, review your errors over and over. Learn from your mistakes and you will be less likely to make them yourself. When you are practicing make sure there is little to no distractions in your environment. If you have a phone or iPad, make sure it is no where in sight. The last and most important rule is to understand what is being asked of you. This will lead you to understand what your solution should have in it. This will require you to read the problems deeply and make sure you understand all the directions or given portions to the problem.