Examples Of Multiplication Word Problems

Tips for Creating Multiplication Word Problems

If your child is just learning multiplication, you should keep the word problems simple. Only use multiplication facts that he or she is familiar with. In addition, try to formulate problems that can be solved in one step.

If your child is more advanced, you can include more difficult numbers, including fractions and decimals. Just make sure the numbers you choose are at an appropriate level of difficulty for your child. His or her textbook and teacher can be good references if you're unsure.

Additionally, you might want to incorporate real-life situations into your word problems. For example, if you're throwing a party, you could have your child calculate how much food will be needed. Similarly, if you're making the food for your party and you need to double a recipe, have your child multiply the measurements by two. Real-life application can help students understand why they're learning a topic in school.

Word Problems by Grade Level

Third

In third grade, students typically memorize the times tables for 0-12. It's especially important to keep numbers simple and familiar for kids at this age for two reasons: you don't want to discourage them and you want to reinforce their times tables facts as much as possible.

1. Karen is taking cookies to school for her birthday. If she takes three packages of cookies, and each package has ten cookies, how many cookies can she hand out? (Answer: 30)
2. In every box of pencils, there are three red pencils and four blue pencils. If there are ten boxes of pencils, how many pencils are there of each color? (Answer: 30 red pencils and 40 blue pencils)

Fourth

In fourth grade, students learn to multiply whole numbers and fractions.

1. Every day, Mitchell runs 2/3 of a mile. How many miles will he have run at the end of one week? (Answer: 4 2/3 miles)
2. Each person at a party ate 1/4 of a pizza. If there were 8 people at the party, how many pizzas were there? (Answer: 2 pizzas)

Fifth

In fifth grade, students begin to multiply numbers with decimals. Rounding to the hundredths place is also covered at this level. If your child is at this age, money is a great topic for word problems because it incorporates decimals and is a practical skill to practice.

1. If a box of chocolate chip cookies costs $3.00, and a box of sugar cookies costs $2.50, what's the total cost for 15 boxes of chocolate chip cookies and 20 boxes of sugar cookies? (Answer: $95.00)
2. At a restaurant, Hanna's total is $25.10. If she wants to tip the waiter 20%, how much will her final bill be? (Answer: $30.12)