Word Problem Wednesday: HAPPY NEW YEAR!

By | Added Dec 30, 2015

It's the last Word Problem Wednesday of 2015! In the spirit of celebration, give our word problem a try... we'll update this article with the answer once we return in 2016!

Georgina is making a banner to decorate the house for a New Year’s party. The banner is a rectangle with a perimeter of 16 feet and a width of 2 feet. What is the length of the banner?

We'd like to thank all of you for sharing our love of math with us in 2015—we're looking forward to making 2016 the best year yet! Wishing you and your family a happy, safe, and prosperous new year!

Update: Happy 2016! Here's the solution:

We first need to find the length of the banner. The entire perimeter is 16 feet and the width is 2 feet. The formula for the perimeter of a rectangle is P = 2L + 2W, so substituting our values for the perimeter and width, we have:
16 = 2L + 2(2)
Simplify.
16 = 2L + 4
Subtract 4 from both sides.
12 = 2L
Divide both sides by 2.
6 = L
The length of the banner is 6 feet.