Abi gave 4 pens to every boy and 5 pens to every girl in her class. There were 4 more boys than girls in the class. She gave away 24 more pens to the girls than the boys.
- How many children were there in the class?
- How many pens were there altogether?
(a)
There were 4 more boys than girls.
If we remove the 4 extra boys, the number of boys and girls will be the same.
The difference in the number of pens given between the boys and girls will increase.
Increase in the difference of the number of pens if there were 4 less boys
= 4 x 4
= 16
Total difference in the number of pens between the boys and the girls
= 24 + 16
= 40
Number of more pens given to each boy than each girl
= 5 - 4
= 1
Number of sets of 1 boy and 1 girl
= 40 ÷ 1
= 40
Number of girls = 40
Number of boys
= 40 + 4
= 44
Number of children
= 40 + 44
= 84
(b)
Total number of pens
= 40 x 5 + 44 x 4
= 200 + 176
= 376
Answer(s): (a) 84; (b) 376
