Lucy gave 5 pens to every boy and 9 pens to every girl in her class. There were 5 more boys than girls in the class. She gave away a total of 151 pens.
- How many children were there in the class?
- How many less pens were given to the boys than the girls?
(a)
There were more boys than girls in class.
If we remove the 5 extra boys, the number of boys and girls will be the same.
Lucy would give away less pens.
Number of less pens that Lucy needed to give away if there was 5 less boys
= 5 x 5
= 25
Number of pens she would need if there was 5 less boys
= 151 - 25
= 126
Number of pens to give for every 1 boy and 1 girl
= 5 + 9
= 14
Number of sets of 1 boy and 1 girl
= 126 ÷ 14
= 9
Number of girls = 9
Number of boys
= 9 + 5
= 14
Number of children
= 9 + 14
= 23
(b)
Number of pens given to the boys
= 14 x 5
= 70
Number of pens given to the girls
= 9 x 9
= 81
Number of less pens given to the boys than the girls
= 81 - 70
= 11
Answer(s): (a) 23; (b) 11
