Words to Equations

Translate stories into algebra

An interactive lesson with 7 steps, about 6 minutes: you predict, drag and solve, with instant feedback on every answer. It runs in your browser and needs JavaScript.

What you’ll learn

• Name the unknown, translate each fact, solve, then check against the story.
• "3 less than $x$" is $x - 3$, and "3 times as many" means multiplying.
• Testing an equation with real numbers catches translation mistakes.

Steps

1. Translate
2. A recipe for word problems
3. The rectangle
4. Three in a row
5. Find them
6. Ages
7. Which equation?