Levi made a scale drawing of an apartment. In real life, the broom closet is 3 feet long. It is 6 inches long in the drawing. What is the scale factor of the drawing?

Question

Simplify your answer and write it as a ratio, using a colon.

Answer 1

To find the scale factor of Levi's drawing, we first need to convert both measurements to the same unit. In this case, we'll convert the real-life measurement of the broom closet from feet to inches, since the drawing is given in inches.

1 foot is equal to 12 inches, so: 3 feet = 3 × 12 inches = 36 inches.

Now, we know:

• Real-life length of the broom closet = 36 inches
• Length of the broom closet in the drawing = 6 inches

Now, we can express the scale factor as the ratio of the drawing length to the real-life length:

Scale factor = Length in drawing : Real life length
Scale factor = 6 inches : 36 inches.

Next, we simplify this ratio:

6 : 36 can be simplified by dividing both sides by 6:

6 ÷ 6 : 36 ÷ 6 = 1 : 6.

Thus, the scale factor of the drawing is 1 : 6.