Solving Area Word

Problems

Helpful Hints

Steps for solving area word problems:

Look for clue wordsDraw a pictureWrite the formulaSolve

Allison is filling her yard with grass. The width of her yard was 12 ft. and the length was 14 ft. How much grass does she need?

Problem #1

Allison is filling her yard with grass. The width of her yard was 12 ft. and the length was 14 ft. How much grass does she need?

Look for clue words

The word “filling” indicates that we are covering the space inside Allison’s yard. We

know we must find area.

Allison is filling her yard with grass. The width of her yard was 12 ft. and the length was 14 ft. How much grass does she need?

Draw a picture

12 ft.

14 ft.

Allison is filling her yard with grass. The width of her yard was 12 ft. and the length was 14 ft. How much grass does she need?

Write the Formula

12 ft.

14 ft.

Area = l x w

Allison is filling her yard with grass. The width of her yard was 12 ft. and the length was 14 ft. How much grass does she need?

Solve

12 ft.

14 ft.

Area = l x wArea = 12 x 14Area = 168 ft.²

Mrs. Ames wants to buy carpet for her bedroom. The length of her room is 14 ft. and the width is 10 ft. How much carpet will she need?

Problem #2

Mrs. Ames wants to buy carpet for her bedroom. The length of her room is 14 ft. and the width is 10 ft. How much carpet will she need?

Look for Clue Words

Since carpet covers the floor space of a room, we know we must find area.

Mrs. Ames wants to buy carpet for her bedroom. The length of her room is 14 ft. and the width is 10 ft. How much carpet will she need?

Draw a picture

10 ft.

14 ft.

Mrs. Ames wants to buy carpet for her bedroom. The length of her room is 14 ft. and the width is 10 ft. How much carpet will she need?

Write the Formula

10 ft.

14 ft.

Area = l x w

Mrs. Ames wants to buy carpet for her bedroom. The length of her room is 14 ft. and the width is 10 ft. How much carpet will she need?

Solve

10 ft.

14 ft.

Area = l x wArea = 10 x 14Area = 140 ft.²

Mr. Wolfe is putting up his A.R. bulletin board. He wants to cover the board with “night sky” background paper. If the board is 3 yards long and 3 yards wide, how much paper will he need?

Problem #3

Look for clue words

“Cover” is the big clue word in this problem. The paper will fill up the space inside the

board.

Mr. Wolfe is putting up his A.R. bulletin board. He wants to cover the board with “night sky” background paper. If the board is 3 yards long and 3 yards wide, how much paper will he need?

Mr. Wolfe is putting up his A.R. bulletin board. He wants to cover the board with “night sky” background paper. If the board is 3 yards long and 3 yards wide, how much paper will he need?

Draw a picture

3 yd.

3 yd.

Mr. Wolfe is putting up his A.R. bulletin board. He wants to cover the board with “night sky” background paper. If the board is 3 yards long and 3 yards wide, how much paper will he need?

Write the Formula

3 yd.

3 yd.

Area = l x w

Mr. Wolfe is putting up his A.R. bulletin board. He wants to cover the board with “night sky” background paper. If the board is 3 yards long and 3 yards wide, how much paper will he need?

Solve

3 yd.

3 yd.

Area = l x wArea = 3 x 3

Area = 9 yds.²