AA.16 Solve one-step equations: word problems

Question

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Shane's school is having a spring carnival. When Shane carries a bin of water balloons outside for the balloon toss, he trips and breaks 12 balloons. He counts the remaining water balloons, and there are 14 left.
Which equation can you use to find the number of water balloons w in the bin before Shane trips?

Answer 1

To find the number of water balloons \( w \) in the bin before Shane trips, we can set up an equation based on the problem statement.

Shane originally had \( w \) water balloons. When he trips, he breaks 12 balloons, which means the number of balloons left is \( w - 12 \). According to the problem, after breaking the balloons, he counts 14 balloons remaining.

We can write the equation as follows:

\[ w - 12 = 14 \]

This equation can be used to find the initial number of water balloons \( w \).