options: Number Systems and Quantity: students learn to understand the complex number system and reason quantitatively.

Ratios & Proportional Relationships: students learn to recognize, describe, represent, and reason with ratios, rates, proportional relationships, and percent.

Modeling: students learn to choose and use appropriate mathematics and statistics to analyze real-world empirical situations, improve decisions, and report on their conclusions and the reasoning behind them.

Number & Operations in Base Ten: students learn to work with the base-ten system and build place value understanding.

Number & Operations - Fractions: students learn to understand fractions as numbers and may work with them using addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division.

Operations & Algebra: students learn to solve problems using algebraic thinking and operations such as addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division. They may learn to identify and explain arithmetic patterns, evaluate or manipulate numerical expressions, and reason with equations and inequalities.

Geometry: students learn to classify geometric figures by their properties, and understand and compare the relationships between them. Students develop and use formulas to compute lengths, areas, and volumes, and they use transformations to generate new shapes and compare existing ones. Geometry can be studied with and without coordinates.

Functions: students learn to define, use, and evaluate functions to model relationships between quantities.

Measurement & Data: students learn to work with data and measure attributes such as time, money, length, area, and volume. They may learn to compare measurements to operations and convert between different units of measure.

Statistics & Probability: students learn to analyze and produce data distributions, and build understanding of univariate and bivariate data. They learn to interpret data, make statistical inferences, justify conclusions, understand rules of probability, and use probability to make decisions.

Counting & Cardinality: students learn to know number names and the count sequence, count to tell the number of objects, and compare numbers.
problem_activity: Narrative
The purpose of this activity is for students to solve two-step word problems using all four operations. Students should be encouraged to solve the problem first or write the equation first, depending on their preference. Encourage students to use parentheses if needed to show what is being done first in their equations.
When students make sense of situations to solve two-step problems they reason abstractly and quantitatively (MP2).
MLR5 Co-Craft Questions.
Keep books or devices closed. Display only the problem stem, without revealing the question. Give students 2–3 minutes to write a list of mathematical questions that could be asked about this situation, before comparing their questions with a partner. Invite each group to contribute one written question to a whole-class display. Ask the class to make comparisons among the shared questions and their own. Reveal the intended questions for this task and invite additional connections.
Advances: Reading, Writing
Engagement: Develop Effort and Persistence.
Some students may benefit from feedback that emphasizes effort and time on task. For example, check in and give feedback after each party planning problem.
Supports accessibility for: Attention
Required Materials
Materials to Gather
Base-ten blocks
Materials to Copy
Centimeter Grid Paper - Standard
Launch
Groups of 2
Give students access to grid paper and base-ten blocks.
Activity
“Work independently to solve these problems and write an equation with a letter for the unknown quantity to represent each situation. You can choose to solve the problem first or write the equation first.”
5–7 minutes: independent work time
“Share your solutions and your equations with your partner. Also, tell your partner if you think their solutions and equations make sense or why not.”
5–7 minutes: partner discussion
Student Facing
For each problem:
a. Write an equation to represent the situation. Use a letter for the unknown quantity.
b. Solve the problem. Explain or show your reasoning.
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Kiran is making paper rings each day to decorate for a party. From Monday to Thursday he was able to complete 156 rings. Friday, Kiran and 2 friends worked on making more rings. Each of them made 9 more rings. How many rings did they make over the week?
Mai has 168 muffins. She put 104 of the muffins in a basket. She packed the rest of the muffins into 8 boxes with the same number of muffins. How many muffins were in each box?
There are 184 cups on a table. Three tables with 8 people at each table come up to get drinks and each use a cup. How many cups are on the table now?
Student Response
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Advancing Student Thinking
If students don't write a single equation to represent both steps of the problem, consider asking:
“What equations did you write for each part of the problem?”
“How could you combine your equations into one equation that would represent the problem?”
Activity Synthesis
For each problem have a student share their equation and discuss how it represents the problem.
Consider asking:
“Where do we see ______ from the problem in the equation?”
“What information from the situation did we need to solve and write our equation?”
“How are parentheses used in the equation?”


correct_option_index: 5